Adapted Physical Education

Down's Syndrome (DS) is a chromosomal abnormality caused by a genetic accident that also causes mental retardation and motor impairment. And the lack of stimuli is one of the main reasons that slows down the motor development of individuals with Mental Disability (MD), which on average is characterised by a two-year delay compared to intellectually normal children, mainly due to a lack of basic psychomotor activities, such as balance and global motor coordination. The aim of this study was to carry out a comparative analysis of the levels of functional and motor capacity gaps between two groups of special pupils, where the research problem was to identify whether the motor potential of individuals diagnosed with Down's Syndrome is considered inferior in relation to those with moderate mental disabilities. The methodological procedure used to carry out this work was the application of a battery of tests to assess psychomotor skills without any prior training.