Elite Female Basketball Players Research Articles

Effects of Visual Control Training on the Shooting Performance of Elite Female Basketball Players

In the current study, a method was tested to train visual control in basketball shooting. Using a sender/receiver system, Plato liquid-crystal goggles were wirelessly and manually controlled by the experimenter to manipulate vision of players while they were shooting. During the training the goggles were only open during the final instances of each shot forcing players to use optimal information. In three months, six elite female basketball players, selected on the basis of their shooting style and performance, received 9-15 shot sessions, each consisting of 50 three-point shots with the goggles. Pretest-posttest comparisons revealed that the players who had received the goggle training improved their shooting percentages significantly while two control groups did not. Gradual increases of shooting percentages over training sessions inspired additional confidence in the conclusion that pre-posttest improvements were related to the visual control training. The Plato-goggle system provides a promising tool to be used in sports practice to improve performance.

Fluid Balance of Elite Female Basketball Players Before and During Game Play

This study determined the fluid balance of elite female basketball players before and during competition. Before and during 2 international games, 17 national-level players (age 24.2 ± 3 yr, height 180.5 ± 6 cm, mass 78.8 ± 8 kg) were assessed. Fluid-balance assessment included pregame hydration level as determined by urine specific gravity (USG), change in body mass during the game, ad libitum intake of water or sports drink, and estimated sweat losses. Mean (± SD) USG before Game 1 was 1.005 ± 0.002 and before Game 2 USG equaled 1.010 ± 0.005. Players lost an average of 0.7% ± 0.8% and 0.6% ± 0.6% of their body mass during Games 1 and 2, respectively. In each game, 3 players experienced a fluid deficit >1% of body mass, and 1 other, a fluid deficit >2%. Sweat losses in both games, from the beginning of the warm-up to the conclusion of the game (~125 min with average playing time 16-17 min), were approximately 1.99 ± 0.75 L. Fluid intake in Game 1 and Game 2 equaled 77.8% ± 32% and 78.0% ± 21% of sweat losses, respectively. Most players were hydrated before each game and did not become meaningfully dehydrated during the game. It is possible that the players who experienced the highest levels of dehydration also experienced some degree of playing impairment, and the negative relationship between change in body mass and shooting percentage in Game 2 provides some support for this notion.

Effects of Actions Preceding the Jump Shot on Gaze Behavior and Shooting Performance in Elite Female Basketball Players

The aim was to investigate the effects of different actions preceding the jump shot on basketball shooting in expert female basketball players. Participants took two-point jump shots after a dribble or after receiving a pass. The dribble was executed with the dominant or non-dominant hand. Similarly, the pass was received from the side of the dominant or non-dominant hand. Shooting percentages were higher after a pass than after a dribble, and after a dominant-side than after a non-dominant-side pre-action. Higher percentages were accompanied by longer execution times of actions preceding the shot. Furthermore, it appeared that in all conditions players looked at the rim sufficiently long for accurate shooting. We conclude that actions preceding the jump-shot affect shooting percentages. Effects are related to execution time of actions prior to the shot, possibly in combination with the biomechanical consequences of performing these actions on the dominant or non-dominant side.

Knee Valgus Angle During Landing Tasks in Female Volleyball and Basketball Players

Increased knee valgus angles have been associated with an increased risk of a variety of knee injuries. It has yet to be established if knee valgus angles during jump landing tasks differ between jumping sports with relatively higher and lower knee injury rates-namely, basketball and volleyball. Any difference in knee angles on landing may be related to sport-specific differences, which may in turn relate to the different injury risk rates. Fifteen elite female basketball and volleyball players had their knee valgus angles assessed during 2 landing tasks: 1 bilateral (drop jump landing) and 1 unilateral (step landing task). During the drop jump task knee valgus angle was significantly greater in the basketball group (p = 0.017) in the right knee, but there was no significant difference in performance between sports in the left knee (p = 0.67). During the step landing task volleyball players had significantly greater knee valgus angles than basketball players for both the left (p = 0.018) and right (p = 0.025) knees. The basketball group showed superior control of knee valgus during the unilateral task, which may be related to sport-specific skills. The basketball players showed significant asymmetry in knee valgus angle during bilateral drop jump landings; this finding reflects those of previous studies and may be related to the relative increased knee injury risk reported for this population group.

Anthropometric, body composition and somatotype differences of Iranian elite female basketball and handball players

The aims of the this study were: (A) to determine the anthropometric profile, body composition and somatotype of female basketball (B), and handball (H) players, (B) to compare the mean scores among H and B and (C) to detect possible differences in relation to competition level. A total of 28 female athletes (B=15, H=13), all members of the Iranian national teams, participated in this study. Anthropometric measures required for the calculation of body composition indexes and somatotype components were obtained according to the established literature. These measurements were height, weight, triceps, subscapular, suprailiac, thigh and calf skinfolds, bi-epicondylar diameter of femur and humerus, and flexed biceps and calf girths. All skinfold measurements were taken on the right side of the body with the Yagamy skinfold caliper. Measurements were taken during the peak of the competition season. Subjects' somatotypes were determined by using the Heath-Carter anthropometric method. Somatotype was calculated using the Heath-Carter method.1 Data were analysed using t test with significance accepted at p<0.05. There was no significant difference of body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, fat weight, fat per cent, fat-free weight, waist to hip ratio and stature, weight and triceps skinfold thickness among B and H group. Although B and H group had homogeneity in somatotype characteristics (p<0.05). There was a difference somatotype characteristics among B and H group (p<0.001). Somatotype characterised as mesoendomorph in B group (3.6, 3.5, 2.4) and H athletes' somatotype was mesoendomorph (3.6, 4.7, 1.7). Anthropometric and body composition variables of elite female basketball and handball players were same, but they had different somatotype characteristics. Selection criteria, hours of training and sport-specific physiological demands during the game could explain the observed differences.

Anthropometric, body composition and somatotype differences of Iranian elite female basketball and handball players

The aims of the present study were: (1) to determine the anthropometric profile, body composition and somatotype of female basketball (B) and handball (H) players, (2) to compare the mean...

Anti-Fatigue Experimental Study of Elite Female Basketball Players with Red Light

PURPOSE: To observe changes of the indicators of fatigue-relatedthe in elite female basketball players after red light irradiation, and to explore effective ways and means of recovery. METHODS: 20 athletes of Chinese People's Liberation Army team, which is champion team of Chinese Women's Basketball Association (WCBA) 2007-2008 annual and the medal team of the 11th National Games of China. They were divided into experimental group (10 persons) and the control group (10 persons), two groups in accordance with established training program for 14 days of normal training, the experimental group was used of red light therapy instrument every night for total body irradiation 30 min. And sleep, high exercise load body reaction, aerobic capacity, immune-related indicators experiments were carried out before and after the testing. RESULTS: The 14-day whole body irradiation with red light treatment for the elite female basketball players can play a significant improvement for sleep (P<0.01). The results of hemoglobin levels and high exercise load body reaction, aerobic capacity, the immune system and other indicators have some changes in the average, but did not show significants between same group different period or different groups in same period (P> 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The daily total body irradiation 30 min red light will help elite female basketball players to improve the sleep quality after training.

Salivary hormone and immune responses to different resistance exercise schemes in elite female basketball players

Salivary hormone and immune responses to different resistance exercise schemes in elite female basketball players

“I Consider Myself an Empowered Woman”: The Interaction of Sport, Gender and Disability in the Lives of Wheelchair Basketball Players

This research, involving interviews with elite female wheelchair basketball players, explores how gender and disability intersect in the lives of these athletes. Interviews revealed the integral role athletic identity plays to offset the stigma of disability in their self-identities and in the complex relationships each has with social norms in regard to gender, disability, sport and the body. However, social institutions, including that of adapted sport, reinforce an ableist, sexist ideology that persistently marginalizes these athletes.

Somatotype and Body Fat Percentages among Malaysian Female Basketball Players

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese.This study sought to determine the somatotype and body fat content of elite Malaysian female basketball players. It also sought to differentiate the somatotype and body fat content by playing position - attack, centre and defence. The somatotype was determined using the Heath Carter Somatotyping method and the body fat content by the skinfold method. Twelve elite female basketball players who represented Malaysia in the 1997 SEA Games were selected as the subjects (mean age of 22.75±2.67 years). It was found that the players were predominantly meso-endomorphic with a mean somatotype of 4.49±1.20-3.45±0.77-2.91±0.89. The centre and defence players had meso-endomorphic bodies, but the attack players endo-mosomorphic bodies. The mean body fat content was 19.68%±4.93. The defence were the fattest, followed by the centre and attack players. Female American basketball players have a body fat content of 10 to 16% while the Malaysian players in this study 10% to 26%.本文旨在探討馬來西亞女子籃球選手的體型及體脂比例，並分析球員的位置，結果顯示：防守球員偏向接近肌肉型，脂肪比例平均為19.68%±4.93，對比美國籃球員而言，馬來西亞選手的體脂較高。

Somatotype and size of elite female basketball players

The aim of this study was to compare the somatotype and size of elite female basketball players in terms of playing position and team performance. Anthropometry and somatotype data were collected on 168 players from 14 countries before the Women's World Basketball Championship, Australia, 1994. There were 64 guards (mean ± s: age 25.4 ± 3.3 years, height 1.72 ± 0.06 m, mass 66.1 ± 6.2 kg, somatotype = 2.9 – 3.9 – 2.6), 57 forwards (age 25.2 ± 3.8 years, height 1.81 ± 0.06 m, mass 73.3 ± 5.9 kg, somatotype = 2.8 – 3.5 – 3.2) and 47 centres (age 24.1 ± 3.1 years, height 1.90 ± 0.06 m, mass 82.6 ± 8.2 kg, somatotype = 3.2 – 3.1 – 3.4). Mean somatotypes by position were significantly different (F = 7.73, P < 0.01). Guards had greater mesomorphy than centres and less ectomorphy than forwards and centres. When discriminant function analysis was applied to endomorphy, mesomorphy, ectomorphy, age, height and mass, only height, mass and ectomorphy entered (Wilks' λ = 0.351, F = 31.40, P < 0.000), 70% of the variance was accounted for, and 72% of players were correctly classified. In the four top versus four bottom teams, guards were taller and more ectomorphic, forwards were taller, with lower mesomorphy and higher ectomorphy, and centres did not differ. Thus there are some differences in somatotypes by position and team placing, but the combination of height, mass and ectomorphy provide the best differentiation by position.

114 Psychological correlates of performance in elite female basketball players

Basketball is a fast-paced court sport currently played by over 100,000 females in Australia. Despite this popularity and the presence of a national competition since 1980, research into the sporting experience of elite female basketball players is limited. 19 elite female basketball players competing in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) participated in this research. A pre-screening questionnaire, the Sport Competition Anxiety Test (SCAT), and the Task-Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire were completed prior to the commencement of the 2002-3 season. During the season, players completed the Profile of Mood States (POMS) 1-hour prior to each game Performance data was recorded for each player for each game. Results indicated that tension was significantly correlated with anger ( =.67, p<.05), and depression ( =.80, p<.01). Those participants with lower levels of fatigue ( =-.64, p<.05) and anger ( =-.87, p<.01) had a significantly higher free throw percentage. Those players who were more successful in converting free throw shots made significantly more personal fouls ( =.81, p<.01), thus suggesting higher involvement with the game. Interestingly significant differences were not found for home and away games on mood states such as anger (F(1 ,48) = .63, p = ..43), vigour (F(1 ,48) = .04, p = 85.), and fatigue (F(1 ,48) = 1.21, p = .277). Implications for the findings of this research may have practical application for coaches and players. Suggestions will be offered for further development of this research with female athletes.

Are unilateral and bilateral patellar tendinopathy distinguished by differences in anthropometry, body composition, or muscle strength in elite female basketball players?

Background: Overuse injury to the patellar tendon (patellar tendinopathy) is a major reason for interrupted training and competition for elite athletes. In both sexes, the prevalence of unilateral and bilateral...

The relationship between functional potential and field performance in elite female wheelchair basketball players

The functional classification system for wheelchair basketball is based on an analysis of the players' functional resources through field-testing and game observation. Under this system, players are assigned a score of 1 to 4.5. The aim of this study was to determine if the wheelchair basketball player classification system reflects the existing differences in performance of elite female players. During the World Championship for Wheelchair Basketball in Sydney 1998, eight teams were videotaped for three 40-min games for a total of 120 min per team. Fifty-nine female players (Class I [1 and 1.5 points] n = 12; Class II [2 and 2.5 points] n = 20; Class III [3 and 3.5 points] n = 13; Class IV [4 and 4.5 points] n = 14) were retained for a detailed performance analysis by means of the Comprehensive Basketball Grading System (CBGS). Two-way analysis of variance showed high point players to perform better compared with low point players for the majority of variables determining the quality of game performance. A lack of significant differences between two adjacent classes was explained on the basis of the methodological approach, the class–position relationship in this sample, and the performance level of women's wheelchair basketball. We conclude that the performance of elite female wheelchair basketball players is dependent on functional ability.

Avaliação da seleção brasileira feminina de basquete

Foram avaliadas 13 jogadoras de basquete convocadas para disputa dos Jogos Olímpicos em Sidney - 2000. As atletas foram submetidas à mensuração do peso e altura, a um teste ergoespirométrico em esteira e a um teste de impulsão vertical. Todos os testes foram realizados no Cemafe (Centro de Medicina da Atividade Física e do Esporte) da Unifesp/EPM, em junho de 2000. Os resultados encontrados estão descritos a seguir: idade média de 24,4 ± 4,6 anos, peso corporal 70,8 ± 8,6kg, estatura 182 ± 7,6cm, e índice de massa corpórea (IMC) 21,4 ± 1,8. A avaliação ergoespirométrica revelou valores para o consumo máximo de oxigênio (VO2 máx) de 49,9 ± 5,4ml/kg/min; o consumo de oxigênio no limiar anaeróbio (VO2 LA) de 38,7 ± 4,3ml/kg/min; freqüência cardíaca máxima (FC máx) 194,4 ± 9,6bpm; freqüência cardíaca no limiar anaeróbio (FC LA) 179,7 ± 5,7bpm; velocidade no limiar anaeróbio (VEL LA) 11,9 ± 1,4km/h; gasto calórico no limiar anaeróbio (GASTO CAL) 815,6 ± 71,8kcal/h. No teste de impulsão vertical as atletas foram orientadas a saltar com a maior potência e o maior número de vezes possível em 30 segundos, detectando-se os índices por equipamento sonar (Vertisonic®). Foram encontrados para a potência máxima ou pico de potência 9,9 ± 2,2W e um trabalho muscular total durante os 30 segundos de 602,1 ± 104,8J. A avaliação médica e fisiológica é fundamental para atletas de alto nível alcançarem sucesso em competições de nível internacional, sendo estes parâmetros essenciais ao planejamento e periodização do treinamento.

Injuries of young elite female basketball players over a six-year period.

To analyze injuries retrospectively among female basketball players at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) from 1990 to 1995 inclusive. The medical records of all the female basketball players on AIS (residential) scholarships were examined, and all injuries were recorded. The Sports Medicine Department at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra, Australia. The participants were 49 elite female basketball players, holding full scholarships at the AIS, with an average age of 17.6 years at the time of injury presentation. Injury presentation according to region involved, nature of injury, and most common specific injuries (diagnoses). A total of 223 injuries were recorded: 139 were acute and 84 were chronic. The regions most frequently injured were the knee (18.8%), ankle (16.6%), lumbar spine (11.7%), and lower legs (10.8%). The most frequent diagnoses were ankle lateral ligament sprain (12.1%), patellar tendinitis (6.7%), lower limb stress fractures (5.4%), finger sprains (4.9%), and mechanical low back pain (4.5%). There was a high incidence of knee and ankle injury in this group of young elite female basketball players, and stress fractures were not uncommon. The incidence of injury in female basketball players may be increasing. Further research in this area may help reduce the risk of stress fractures and serious ankle and knee injuries.

Effects of the type of recovery training on the concentric strength of the knee extensors

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of specific concentric and eccentric training on concentric muscular strength following an initial standardized period of excessive training that combined concentric and eccentric actions. For a period of 12 weeks, 37 young elite female basketball players performed standardized training, which included concentric and eccentric actions at 70% and 110% of one-repetition maximum (1-RM), respectively. They were then divided into three groups that followed 12 week programmes which included concentric (C-E/C, n = 13), eccentric (C-E/E, n = 13) or a combination of both concentric and eccentric (C-E/C-E, n = 11) exercises. The standardized and specific training programmes consisted of 16 and 8 sets of eight repetitions respectively, performed four times a week. Eleven players who did not participate in either the standardized or specific training programmes served as controls (n = 11). Following the initial 12 weeks of standardized training, the concentric strength of the knee extensors was evaluated isokinetically and using leg-press and squat-jump tests. Significant (P < 0.05) reductions in isokinetic torque, and leg-press and squat-jump performance, were seen. The C-E/C group showed significant (P < 0.05) increases in isokinetic torque, and leg-press and squat-jump performance, after 24 weeks of training when compared with pretraining values. Conversely, no significant differences were noted for the C-E/E and C-E/C-E groups. These findings confirm the mode specificity principle, as only the concentric specific training programme improved the concentric strength of the knee extensors.