Abstract
The research was carried out in order to determine the influence of morphological characteristics, motor and functional abilities (predictor sets) on the athletics program content of physical education (criterion set) of the elementary school students. A sample of 105 respondents was taken from the population of the seventh and eighth grade male students of elementary schools in Nis. 14 measuring instruments for the assessment of morphological characteristics were used, nine for the assessment of motor abilities, three for evaluation of functional abilities and four athletics program content of physical education variables. The results of canonical correlation analysis showed that all three predictor sets (morphological characteristics, motor and functional abilities) have statistically significant impact on the criterion set (athletics program content of physical education) with the students of elementary schools. Within the relations between the system of morphological characteristics and criterion two canonical factors that significantly explain the level of connection (CR = .75 and .69). Between the system of motor abilities and the criterion, three canonical factors that significantly explain the level of connection (CR = .91, .78 and .45) were obtained. The system of functional capabilities is significantly associated with the system of criterion variables at the level of .01 together with one canonical factor (CR .65). These results are also confirmed by the use of regressive analysis, so that all sets of predictor variables significantly influenced each of the individual criterion variable.