Abstract
This study examined the micro-pacing strategies during a distance freestyle cross-country (XC) skiing competition. Nine female and 10 male highly trained XC skiers wore a GNSS device during a FIS-sanctioned race. The course was ~4900 m; women completed two-laps; men completed three-laps. The course was divided into uphill (S1, S3, S5, S7), downhill (S2, S4, S6, S8), and flat (S9) sections for analyses. Statistical parametric mapping was used to determine the course positions (clusters) where total race time or section time was significantly associated with instantaneous skiing speed. Total race time was associated with instantaneous skiing speed during a cluster in S1 on lap 2 for both sexes (t ≥ 5.899, p ≤ 0.008). The two longest uphill sections (S1; S5) and the flat section (S9) contained clusters where section times were related to instantaneous skiing speed for both sexes (p < 0.05). The fastest woman gained 6.9 s on the slowest woman during a cluster in S1 on lap 1 and 7.3 s during a cluster in S9 on lap 1. The fastest man gained 51.7 s on the slowest man over all clusters in S5 over the 3 laps combined. Compared to skiers with longer total race times, skiers with shorter race times skied with faster instantaneous speeds in some clusters of the uphill sections, as well as on the flat section of the course. This study also identified different relative micro-pacing strategies for women and men during freestyle distance XC skiing races. Finally, statistical parametric mapping analyses can help to identify individual strengths and weaknesses for guiding training programs and optimise competition pacing strategies.
Highlights
International Ski Federation (FIS) cross-country (XC) skiing competitions are typically categorised into two main formats for individual events: sprint skiing (1.0–1.8 km) and distance skiing (≥ 10 and ≥ 15 km for women and men, respectively), and use either the freestyle or classical technique (The International Ski Federation, 2020)
The statistical parametric mapping (SPM) regressions revealed that total race time was associated with instantaneous speed during parts of S1 on lap 2 (t = 7.950; p = 0.004; Figure 2)
Over all sections on the first, second and third laps, respectively, the fastest skier gained 15.3 s, 35.5 s, and 26.6 s on the slowest skier. This is the first study to our knowledge that has analysed micropacing strategies during a freestyle distance XC skiing race, using a method that allows comparison of skiing speed at standardised course locations
Summary
International Ski Federation (FIS) cross-country (XC) skiing competitions are typically categorised into two main formats for individual events: sprint skiing (1.0–1.8 km) and distance skiing (≥ 10 and ≥ 15 km for women and men, respectively), and use either the freestyle or classical technique (The International Ski Federation, 2020). The topography varies throughout the courses and contains approximately equal distances of uphill, downhill and flat sections (The International Ski Federation, 2020). Each of these factors influence a skier’s distribution of effort throughout skiing races (i.e., the skier’s pacing strategy) (Stöggl et al, 2018). It has been observed that skiers apply specific micro-pacing strategies within laps, which might be related to variations in the course topography (Andersson et al, 2010; Sandbakk et al, 2011, 2016; Ihalainen et al, 2020). The results from Ihalainen et al (2020) identified that the skiing speeds during transitions between uphill and flat sections, and from flat or uphill to downhill sections, were strongly related to shorter race times (i.e., better performance)
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