2.2. Performance Assessment
Sports performance was assessed using the Cooper test [A treadmill (LifeFitness 95Ti model, Life Fitness, Ljubljana, Slovenia) was used for the Cooper test to ensure that the conditions were as similar as possible for all subjects in terms of weather conditions. Prior to testing, the participants were given 60 min to prepare for the test and to warm up. The warm up consisted of 10–15 min of easy running. During this period, the participants self-selected the speed at which they later began testing. This was followed by a period of 10–15 min when the participants individually prepared for the test, including foam rolling, stretching, and other warm up strategies they were accustomed to performing for training and/or matches. Two hours after consuming nitrates or placebo, the participants began the Cooper test. This allowed enough time for the conversion of nitrates to nitric oxide [