Athletics Championships Research Articles

SPORT: World Athletics Championships (London)

SPORT: World Athletics Championships (London)

Muscular viscoelastic characteristics of athletes participating in the European Master Indoor Athletics Championship.

To investigate how the viscoelastic characteristics of muscles (non-neural tone, elasticity and stiffness) vary as a function of age and gender in a sample of track and field master athletes. To compare these findings with data on related sedentary subjects in literature. A total of 390 athletes (aged 35-99) were assessed during the European Master Athletics Indoor Championship 2016. A non-invasive measurement device called MyotonPro was used to measure tone, stiffness, and elasticity in the biceps brachii and rectus femoris muscles at rest. Linear regression analysis was used to assess the correlation between age and the measured parameters. To compare our results with previously reported data, we stratified participants according to gender and age. Tone was found to not be dependent on age, whereas stiffness was found to be age dependent. Elasticity was found to be both physical activity and age dependent. Tone (only for men), elasticity, and stiffness were lower in master athletes than in sedentary subjects. Tone, elasticity, and stiffness change with aging; nevertheless, our findings suggest that physical activity can delay the effects of muscular aging, improving fitness in older people.

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL INJURY SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM DURING MAJOR ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS: WHAT IS THE METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY?

BackgroundEpidemiological studies with injury surveillance during major athletics championships are of interest to improve the knowledge on injury incidence and prevalence in this context. However, the quality of the injury...

WHAT PRE-PARTICIPATION HEALTH COMPLAINTS AND ATHLETE CHARACTERISTICS PREDICT INJURY AND ILLNESS AT MAJOR ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS? COHORT STUDY AT THE BEIJING 2015 IAAF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

BackgroundDuring the month before world championships in individual sports, about one-third of athletes are disturbed by injury complaints. Athletics athletes reporting a pre-championship gradual-onset injury complaint are known to be...

INJURY RISK IS DIFFERENT BETWEEN MALE AND FEMALE ATHLETES DURING 14 INTERNATIONAL ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

BackgroundDuring top-level international Athletics championships, injury risk was about 100 injuries per 1000 athletes for outdoor championships, and about 63 injuries per 1000 athletes for indoors championships. However, it is...

HAMSTRING MUSCLE INJURY IS THE FIRST INJURY DIAGNOSIS DURING MAJOR ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

BackgroundDuring top-level international athletics championships, thigh muscle tear (hamstring muscle tear in particular) was the most commonly reported injury diagnosis. However, there has been no detailed characterisation of hamstring muscle...

"A More Equitable Society": The Politics of Global Fairness in Paralympic Sport.

The Paralympic Movement explicitly sets out to create a more equitable society and promote participation for all and fairness in disability sport. This is primarily achieved through the use of a range of interventions with less attention given to how economic factors may hinder access and achievement in Paralympic sport. We investigated how country-level economic variables influence the level of participation and achievement in the 2015 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Athletics Championships held in Doha. We used multiple regression analysis to show how levels of participation and achievement in the Championships were significantly determined by economic factors independent of population size.Our data show that in spite of the ideals of inclusion and fairness within the Paralympic Movement and the considerable effort expended on the use of technologies to achieve this, economic factors continue to exert a statistically significant influence on both the level of participation and achievement of Paralympic athletes. LMICs participate at lower levels and achieve fewer medals when compared to HICs. These differences are particularly marked in events that have a high cost of participation. Our findings raise questions regarding the use of current technologies and the level to which they are able to truly disrupt the politics of global inequality in sport.

Hosting International Events and Promoting South Korean Identity Discourses: Continuities and Discontinuities

More than six decades after the end of the Korean War (1950–53), the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Republic of Korea (ROK) continue to face each other across the highly fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) along the 38th parallel on the Korean peninsula. Both Korean governments continue to maintain and reinforce a pan-Korean identity amongst its respective populations. At the same time, both states need to provide its respective citizens with distinct national identities, which obviously requires a politically difficult and highly delicate balancing act. The focus of this paper is on the dominant identity discourses in South Korea. These have been observed, interpreted and analyzed in five international events and festivals that the South hosted over the last three decades: the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the 2002 Soccer World Cup (co-hosted with Japan), the Busan Asian Games in the same year, the 2011 Daegu World Athletic Championships and the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. All these events offered a distinctive nationalist flavour, celebrated tradition and modernity, and emphasized South Korea’s rapid 20th century development and achievements, but also served as a reminder of the ethnic homogeneity of the divided Korean people and the unjust political division of the Korean peninsula.

Quality Perception of the 2012 World Indoor Athletics Championships

The objective of this study was to compare the views of spectators concerning the quality perception of the World Indoor Athletics Championships. The study group consisted of 568 spectators who watched the events. A measurement scale of event quality in spectator sports (SEQSS) developed by Ko et al. (2011) was used as a data collection tool in the study. In order to determine the views of the spectators concerning the quality of the Indoor Athletics Championships, the dimensions constituting the scale were compared according to the demographic features of the sample group. As a consequence, important differences in most of the dimensions of the scale were revealed with respect to the demographic data of the subjects. The most relevant finding of the study is that the dimension of “physical environment quality”, which is one of the dimensions constituting the event quality, differed significantly in all comparisons that were made according to demographic features.

Preparticipation predictors for championship injury and illness: cohort study at the Beijing 2015 International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships

ObjectivesTo determine preparticipation predictors of injury and illness at a major Athletics championship.MethodsA cohort study design was used. Before the 2015 International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships in Athletics,...

Strategies and factors associated with preparing for competing in the heat: a cohort study at the 2015 IAAF World Athletics Championships

PurposeAssess exertional heat illness (EHI) history and preparedness in athletes competing in a World Athletics Championships under hot/humid conditions and identify the factors associated with preparedness strategies.MethodsOf the 207 registered...

An Example of the Informative Potential of Polar Coordinate Analysis: Sprint Tactics in Elite 1,500-m Track Events

ABSTRACTPolar coordinate analysis is a powerful data reduction technique based on the Zsum statistic, which is calculated from adjusted residuals obtained by lag sequential analysis. Its use has been greatly simplified since the addition of a module in the free software program HOISAN for performing the necessary computations and producing easy-to-interpret results in the form of polar coordinate maps. In this study, we provide a simple and practical example of how this technique can be used to analyze tactical behaviors in sport and physical exercise. We studied 158 performances by 82 male runners in thirteen 1,500-m finals held at the Olympic Games, the World Championships in Athletics, and the European Athletics Championships between 2000 and 2012 to investigate associations between the initiation of sprints by race winners and other runners (focal behaviors) and the lap and zone of the track in which the sprints were initiated (conditional behaviors). The significant prospective/retrospective activating/inhibitory relationships shown in the polar coordinate maps confirm the decision to start a sprint is a tactical one and are consistent with a winning strategy consisting of avoiding giving rivals the benefit of the slipstream while conserving sufficient energy for a final winning burst. Polar coordinate analysis is a powerful technique for studying tactical behaviors in the field of sport.

An injury complaints in the months before the championships is a risk factor for injury during athletics championships

During international athletics championships, the incidence and characteristics of new injuries have been well described: about 10% of registered athletes have a new injury. It seemed also important to understand the complaints of athletes in terms of injuries in the period before and at the start of the championships and potential association with potential new injuries for identification of possible risk factors. The objective of this study was to determine the health of athletes before the start of an international athletics championship and to identify risk factors for new injuries. In the 2013 World Athletics Championships in Moscow, all athletes enrolled ( n = 1784) were asked to complete a pre-participation health questionnaire (PHQ) collecting data on the health status during the months preceding the championships. During the period of the Championships, all new injuries were prospectively recorded. The PHQ was completed by 698 (39%) of the athletes; 204 (29.2%) reported suffering such injury complaint during the month before the championships. The most common mode of onset of pain before championships was gradual (43.6%). Forty-nine athletes reported at least one new injury during the championships. Athletes who reported suffering injuries before championships had an increased risk of having a new injury during the championship [odds ratio (OR) = 2.09; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.16–3.77; P = 0.014] and those who reported suffering injuries championships before a gradual fashion appearance were at increased risk of almost four times to re-injury with sport stop in the championship (OR = 3.92; 95% CI: 1.69–9.08; P = 0.001). Approximately one third of athletes participating in an international athletics championship and involved in this study reported an injury complaint during the month before the championships. This represented a risk factor to suffer a new injury during the championship. This study highlights the potential importance of a pre-participation health questionnaire as a screening tool to identify athletes at risk of injury before international athletics championships.

Athletic injury prevention: Epidemiology of injuries during the French Elite championships

The epidemiology of injuries is the first step in the sports injuries prevention. In this context, the IAAF and EA have implemented a prospective injury follow-up during their international athletics championships since 2007, and the FFA initiated since the French championships in 2014. The aim of the study was to determine the incidence and characteristics of injuries during the French Elite championships. During the period of the outdoor and indoor French Elite championships, all newly occurring injuries were recorded by the local medical team. During the outdoor French Elite championships (2014 and 2015), an incidence of 40 to 60 injuries per 1000 registered athletes has been reported. The main diagnoses were: muscle injury hamstring and leg cramps. The injuries occurred mainly in combined events disciplines (20–50%), hurdles (37%), sprint (23–29%) and jumps (19%). It is also interesting to note that 50 athletes (9%) contested the championships and mentioned already present injury (occurred the previous day, weeks or months before the championships and/or recurrent during the championships). At the indoor French Elite championships (2014 and 2015), an incidence of 45–48 injuries per 1000 registered athletes has been reported. The main diagnosis was muscle hamstring injury, followed by knee injuries and ankle sprains. The injuries occurred primarily in jumps (29%), combined events (24%), sprint (17–24%) and hurdles (18%). It is emphasized that this is the first epidemiological data during the French Elite Athletics championships. This information is fundamental to understanding the risk of injury among Elite athletes at the French national level to develop well-adapted prevention measures to their own problems. The injury is multifactorial, its prevention requires the consideration and management of several parameters such as physical fitness, technical mastery of gesture, lifestyle, psychological aspects, a good course of treatment, equipment and sporting rules.

Muscle injuries and hamstring muscle injuries during the international athletics championships between 2007 and 2015

The purpose of this study was to analyse the incidence and characteristics of muscle injuries and hamstring muscle injuries occurred during the international athletics championships from 2007 to 2015. National medical teams and local organizing committee physicians have collected every day all newly occurred injury whenever international championship from 2007 to 2015. Only the muscle injuries and hamstring muscle injuries, whatever gravity (cramp, contracture, rupture, avulsion), were analysed. A total of 720 muscle injuries have been reported on the total of 1762 recorded injuries, 40.9% of injuries; 57.5% ( n = 414) have resulted in time loss of sport. The overall incidence of muscle injuries was significantly higher among male athletes than female athletes (49.1 ± 4.4 vs. 28.7 ± 3.7 injuries per 1000 registered athletes, respectively; RR = 1.71; 95% CI: 1.46 to 2.00). A total of 185 hamstring muscle injuries were reported on the total of 1082 recorded injuries (9 championships included). This represented 17.1% of total injuries; 61.1% lead to time loss of sport. Hamstring muscle injuries represented 39.8% of all muscle damage, and 74.6% of all thigh muscle injuries. The overall incidence of hamstring muscle injuries was significantly higher in athletes than female athletes men (22.4 ± 3.4 vs. 11.5 ± 2.6 injuries per 1000 registered athletes, respectively; RR = 1 94; 95% CI: 1.42 to 2.66). The impacts of hamstring muscle injuries were significantly higher in male than female athletes for the sprints, hurdles and jumps. There was no difference between male and female athletes in the frequency of hamstring muscle injuries between outdoor and indoor championships, the type, cause, severity, discipline and age categories. During international athletics championships, muscle injury is the principal type of injury, and among those, the hamstring is the most commonly affected, with a two times higher risk in male than female athletes. Athletes in explosive power events, male athletes and older male athletes, in specific were more at risk of muscle injuries and hamstring injuries. Injury prevention strategies should be sex-specific.

Investigation of personality characteristics of hearing impaired athletes participating in 2nd European youth hearing impaired athletics championships

The aim of this research is to assess the personality characteristics of national hearing impaired athletes and to evaluate the relationship between gender and branches with the personality characteristics. For this purpose, this research has been designed on screening model. The research was performed with Athletes Participating in 2nd European Youth Hearing Impaired Athletics Championships, held on 21-23 August 2014 inTrabzon. The research group consisted of 67 athletes including 26 fromTurkey, 2 fromBelgium, 3 fromEstonia, 8 fromGermany, 4 fromLithuania, 1 from theNetherlands, 12 fromPoland, 9 fromRussiaand 2 fromSpain. 34.3% (n = 23) of athletes were female, 65.7% (n = 44) consisted of male athletics. PERI (Personality Inventory) personality scale consisting of 25 items was used for measuring personality traits of national hearing impaired athletes in the research. PERI; is composed of 5 subgroups including openness to experience, sense of responsibility, extraversion, compatibleness and emotional stability. The scale was applied with face to face technical to athletes by two experts who know the language of the hearing impaired. In the analysis of the research data, frequency and percentage distribution, t-test, Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney U tests were performed. In the result of the research; There were no significant differences between sport branches and gender and personality characteristics of the athletes. (p>0.05). National hearing impaired athletes had in ''not effective or low'' level the personality trait of emotional stability and they defined as the individuals not feeling optimistic enough, easy-tempered and having a high level of anxiety. But they had in ''effective or high'' level the personality traits of sense of responsibility and they defined as disciplined individuals who do not give up in the face of difficulties themselves, pay attention to details, are planned in everything they do.

Methodological quality of the injury surveillance system used in international athletics championships.

Incidence and prevalence data obtained from injury surveillance studies could be biased by the response rate as well as by the completeness and quality of the reports. It therefore appears crucial to analyse the quality of the injury surveillance system itself and thereby validate the quality of the data. This study aimed to analyse the quality of and compliance with the injury surveillance system implemented during international athletics championships. Prospective, epidemiological study. The national medical teams and the local organising committee physicians daily reported all injuries on a standardised injury report form during 14 international athletics championships from 2007 to 2015. The quality of the injury surveillance system was analysed following the guidelines laid down by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. On average 41.7±17.4% (mean±standard deviation) of all registered countries participated in the injury surveillance project, accounting for a coverage of athletes of 79.5±10.2% of all registered athletes. Their medical staff returned 89.2±8.4% of the expected injury report forms (information is missing for one championship). The completeness of injury data provided by medical teams and local organising committee physicians averaged 95.8±6.5%. National medical teams reported 60.6±16.6% of all injuries, and local organising committee physicians 28.7±15.0% whereas 10.6±6.5% of injuries were reported by both. The injury surveillance system used during international athletics championships provided good national medical team participation, coverage of athletes, response rate, and completeness of reports. These parameters should be systematically reported for injury surveillance studies to show the quality of the study.

Aerosol Optical Properties over Beijing during the World Athletics Championships and Victory Day Military Parade in August and September 2015

A special period in Beijing from 6 August to 17 September 2015, during which the World Athletics Championships and Victory Day military parade took place, and which involved measures to restrict traffic and reduce factory emissions, was selected to analyze the aerosol optical properties and the impact of meteorological conditions on pollution levels. The study was based on AERONET observational and retrieval data, particulate matter measurements (TEOM 1405), meteorological data, and then the HYSPLIT model was used to analyze the pollution sources. The study period was divided into three sub-periods according to the different stages of implementation of the control measures, and the main conclusions can be summarized as follows. During the period in which the restrictive measures were applied, the air quality improved significantly, with the average value of the AOD being 0.34 ± 0.20, about 69% less than before. Meanwhile, the average Ångström exponent was about 9.5% higher than before, with an average value of 1.38 ± 0.25, indicating that the main pollutants were fine particles. Single scattering albedo decreased as wavelength increased, being higher than in the other two stages (mean value of 0.944 ± 0.045). This showed that the strong scattering capacity and absorption aerosol optical depth was at its lowest, at about 0.008 ± 0.009. The peaks of aerosol volume concentration in the fine and coarse mode were significantly reduced. Meteorological conditions also had a certain effect on the aerosol optical properties, with the blowing of clean and dry wind and the occurrence of precipitation contributing to the overall improvement in air quality.

Kinematic Analysis of Take off Technique on the Performance of the Fosbury Flop

The high jump is one of the most technical and complex event of the athletics. Top high jumper's in the world use one of the versions of Fosbury Flop technique , this proved the most efficient so far. This technique comprises the preparation for the touchdown, take off, the flight phase , bar clearance and landing. It is not easy to learn and perform, since it requires some special skills. Its mechanical and dynamic analysis reveals movements of an exceptional difficulty that cannot be so easily assimilated by most jumpers. Certain time of execution (particularly those made over the bar) requires a psycho motor control and an extreme sensibility that can't be easily reached by everyone. Thirteen male national high jumpers were selected for this study and get videotaped with three high speed video cameras during their competitive performance in the men's high jump final during the 52nd National open athletics championship in outdoor with the informed consent of the athletes. In this research we used three Panasonic-AG-DVX-102B, F11 sensitivity, high image quality, camcorders, Quintic Biomechanics v21 motion analysis software. I. Introduction To clear a high jump bar, it is necessary to drive the center of mass (COM) of the athlete as high as possible. It is also necessary to move the body in the air in a way that will allow the athlete to clear a bar set as close as possible to the peak height reached by the COM. For a given peak height reached by the COM lowering some parts of the body allows other parts to go higher. This was the mechanical principle that has improved the effectiveness of the bar clearance over the years. If a high jumper remains in a straight vertical position after taking off from the ground, the height of the bar that the feet will be able to clear will be far below the peak height of the COM. The simplest improvement over this was a technique in which the athlete flexes at the hips and knees to adopt a squatting position at the peak of the jump. We could call this the legs-up technique. Since the peak height of the COM can't be changed after the athlete leaves the ground, the lifting of the legs is accompanied by a lowering of the trunk. This technique greatly increases the height of the bar that has to be cleared. The major purpose of this study was to investigate the take-off motion at the end of the last stride and identify the characteristics for optimum performance executed by Fosbury-flop jumpers, using 2-dimensional videography. The best jumps of thirteen male high jumpers were filmed at an official track meet by two high- speed cameras. The results suggested that to lower the center of gravity during the touchdown, Fosbury flop jumpers' takeoff leg was planted ahead of the torso by leaning the body backward. II. Methodology Selection of Subjects: Thirteen male national high jumpers were selected for this study and get videotaped with three high speed video cameras during their competitive performance in the men's high jump final during the 52nd National open athletics championship in outdoor with the informed consent of the athletes. Tools and equipment's:

Structural Analysis of Women's Heptathlon.

The heptathlon comprises the results of seven single disciplines, assuming an equal influence from each discipline, depending on the measured performance. Data analysis was based on the data recorded for the individual performances of the 10 winning heptathletes in the World Athletics Championships from 1987 to 2013 and the Olympic Games from 1988 to 2012. In addition to descriptive analysis methods, correlations, bivariate and multivariate linear regressions, and panel data regressions were used. The transformation of the performances from seconds, centimeters, and meters into points showed that the individual disciplines do not equally affect the overall competition result. The currently valid conversion formula for the run, jump, and throw disciplines prefers the sprint and jump disciplines but penalizes the athletes performing in the 800 m run, javelin throw, and shotput disciplines. Furthermore, 21% to 48% of the variance of the sum of points can be attributed to the performances in the disciplines of long jump, 200 m sprint, 100 m hurdles, and high jump. To balance the effects of the single disciplines in the heptathlon, the formula to calculate points should be reevaluated.