TY  - JOUR
A1  - Karamanidis, Kiros
A1  - Albracht, Kirsten
A1  - Braunstein, Bjoern
A1  - Catala, Maria Moreno
A1  - Goldmann, Jan-Peter
A1  - Brüggemann, Gert-Peter
T1  - Lower leg musculoskeletal geometry and sprint performance
JF  - Gait and Posture
N2  - The purpose of this study was to investigate whether sprint performance is related to lower leg musculoskeletal geometry within a homogeneous group of highly trained 100-m sprinters. Using a cluster analysis, eighteen male sprinters were divided into two groups based on their personal best (fast: N = 11, 10.30 ± 0.07 s; slow: N = 7, 10.70 ± 0.08 s). Calf muscular fascicle arrangement and Achilles tendon moment arms (calculated by the gradient of tendon excursion versus ankle joint angle) were analyzed for each athlete using ultrasonography. Achilles tendon moment arm, foot and ankle skeletal geometry, fascicle arrangement as well as the ratio of fascicle length to Achilles tendon moment arm showed no significant (p > 0.05) correlation with sprint performance, nor were there any differences in the analyzed musculoskeletal parameters between the fast and slow sprinter group. Our findings provide evidence that differences in sprint ability in world-class athletes are not a result of differences in the geometrical design of the lower leg even when considering both skeletal and muscular components.
Y1  - 2011
U6  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2011.03.009
SN  - 0966-6362
VL  - 34
IS  - 1
SP  - 138
EP  - 141
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  -