Search results for "Track and field athletics"
showing 10 items of 13 documents
Schoolyard affordances for physical activity: a pilot study in 6 Nordic–Baltic countries
2021
Environmental settings influence children’s and adolescents’ physical activity (PA) in neighborhoods and schoolyards. This study aimed to explore the main characteristics of schoolyards in six Nordic–Baltic countries, to document how those facilities provide affordances for PA in 7–18 year–old schoolchildren, and how the schoolyard meets children’s preferences. One schoolyard was studied in each included country: Iceland, Norway, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. The affordances, facilities, and equipment for PA in schoolyards were identified through orthophoto maps and standard registration forms. Children’s preferences were collected through group interviews at each participating s…
Acute Effects of Loaded Half-Squat Jumps on Sprint Running Speed in Track and Field Athletes and Soccer Players
2016
The purpose of the study was to determine the acute responses to a jump squat protocol designed to induce postactivation potentiation on sprint running performance in experienced track and field athletes and soccer players. Twenty-five regional level athletes (12 track and field: ∼17 years; ∼177 cm; ∼73 kg and 13 soccer: ∼18 years; ∼175 cm; ∼72 kg) performed 2 test sessions assessing 40-m sprint running performance in a balanced, crossover design. Dual-beam light timing gates measured 0-20 and 20-40 m sprint times before and after either 9 minutes of sitting (control) or 2 sets of 6 repetition half-squat jump with the load eliciting maximum power (experimental) conditions. Sprint performanc…
Vertical jumping height and horizontal overhead throwing velocity in young male athletes
1992
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of calendar and skeletal age, anthropometric dimensions, training history and their interactions on vertical jumping height and horizontal overhead throwing velocity in a cross-section of 318 young male athletes (age range 9-16 years) participating in cross-country skiing (n = 70), basketball (n = 40), apparatus gymnastics (n = 19), ice hockey (n = 50), track and field (n = 89) and wrestling (n = 50). Vertical jumping height was measured with four different loads held on the shoulders and then interpolated for loads representing 0 and 40% body mass. Horizontal overhead throwing velocity using both hands was determined for seven balls of d…
Essay: Does training adversely affect long-term health?
2005
A number of philosophers and physicians living in ancient Greece thought that sport could harm both mind and body. Hippocrates, for example, acknowledged the health benefits of physical activity, but also believed that intense athletic competition had a harmful effect on the heart and other organs, and lowered resistance to disease. That athletes do not have a shorter life expectancy than the general population, however, was not appreciated until the 19th century. In 1873, J E Morgan published the results of his study of 294 British oarsmen who participated in the Oxford versus Cambridge boat races between 1829 and 1869. His findings indicated that these sportsmen lived about 2 years longer…
Mechanical jumping power in young athletes.
1987
Mechanical jumping power was determined for 286 young male athletes representing six sports events and ranging in calendar and skeletal ages from 8.8 to 17.1 and from 7.8 to 18.1 years, respectively. The subjects performed successive maximal vertical jumps on a contact mat for 30 s. The number of jumps and their cumulative flight time after 15 and 30 s were used for calculations of mechanical power. The jumping performances of the young athletes were found to be reproducible from the age of 10-12 years in respect to the angular displacement of the knee and duration of contact. Absolute mechanical power, as well as power related to body weight, increased with calendar and skeletal ages. Of t…
Coaches' reflections on the meaning and value of Masters athletics
2019
Masters sport is a growing social movement offering the opportunity to participate in competitive sports in later life. Although many studies have explored Masters athletes' experiences, little is known about how other actors in the sport subcultures construct meaning in Masters sport and whether their stories work to support or hinder participation. Our study explored the cultural narrative resources and life scripts surrounding sport and ageing that coaches draw upon in two European countries, England and Finland, where sport policy has put different emphasis on elite sport and sport for all. We analysed interviews from 23 athletics (track and field) coaches (8 women) to understand how th…
Force-, power-, and elasticity-velocity relationships in walking, running, and jumping
1980
Ground reaction forces and mechanical power were investigated when the subjects walked normally, while they were racing or running at four speeds, and when they performed the running long jump take-off. In addition, the apparent spring constants of the support leg in eccentric and concentric phases were investigated at the four running speeds, during the running long jump take-off, and in the triple jump. Six club level track and field athletes, four national level long jumpers, and six national level triple jumpers took part in the study. Cinematographic technique and a mathematical model of hopping (Alexander and Vernon 1975) were employed in the analysis. Force and power values were foun…
Diagnosis in track and field performances past the 1988 Ben Johnson doping scandal
1999
Beginning with the early 1960s, a lot of performance supporting effects have been integrated in the structure of track and field training, such as technical progress, theoretical knowledge of the training process, development of societies and medical steps, which among others include the forbidden use of steroids or other doping ‘techniques’. Since the integration of those effects took place quite fast, a logistic growth of world class performances concerning the years 1960–1988 can be observed in many disciplines especially if they were not far developed at the beginning of this period. Eight years (1989–1996) later, doping tests of world class athletes have spread (or should have spread) …
Does periodization work? Athletes perform better in major events than in minor competitions
2021
Previous studies on periodization have led to the view that most athletes fail to peak at major events. These conclusions might be based on definitions of “peak performance” that are too narrow. In this study, a track and field athlete was defined as succeeding in a competition if their outcome was within the acceptable range from the best result of the season. The data are from seven championship finals and semifinals together with 42 Diamond League competitions from the 2010s, altogether 7,087 individual results. All field events and running events up to 400 m were included. The majority of athletes succeeded in major events (67.0% in sprint and 57.5% in field events). Overall, champions…
Gender-Typed Sport Practice, Physical Self-Perceptions, and Performance-Related Emotions in Adolescent Girls
2020
Youth sport experience provides opportunities for physical, personal, and social development in youngsters. Sport is a social system in which socially constructed gender differences and stereotypes are incorporated, and specific sport activities are often perceived as gender characterized. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between some salient physical and emotional self-perceptions and the type of sport practiced. A sample of 261 female athletes, aged 14–21 years (Mage = 15.59, SD = 2.00), practicing different sports, categorized as feminine (e.g., artistic and rhythmic gymnastics), masculine (e.g., soccer and rugby), or neutral (e.g., track and field and tennis),…