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Context: A detailed analysis of wheelchair basketball skills in beginner wheelchair basketball players (WBP) can provide practitioners with important indications regarding the selection and prospective development of potential sports talents. A comprehensive WBP evaluation can be very time consuming, mainly during the initial phases of the training processes, which could be a barrier in clinical and practical settings. Moreover, the large number and the turnover of beginner WBP attending rehabilitation centers make the applicability of field and strength tests unfeasible. Objective: To verify the relationships between the medicine ball throw (MBT) and wheelchair basketball mobility performance field tests and the shoulder and trunk peak torque in male and female beginner WBP. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Rehabilitation Hospital Network, Paralympic Program. Participants: Thirty-seven female and male beginner WBP. Main Outcomes Measures: Participants performed wheelchair basketball field tests (speed, agility, strength, and power tests) and the maximum strength test in the isokinetic dynamometer. The outcomes were correlated with the MBT results. Results: The MBT presented significantly very high and perfect correlations with all wheelchair basketball field tests assessed (5-m sprint, 20-m sprint, and zig-zag agility test with and without a ball), and peak torque (R ² ranging from .810 to .995; P ≤ .05) for male and female athletes. Conclusions: The MBT, a simple and feasible test, can be used for estimating and determining the wheelchair mobility performance of female and male beginner WBP. It is suggested to measure the distance of a 5-kg medicine ball thrown by athletes during training and testing routines to follow the players’ progression.

The purpose of the present study was to create a probabilistic neural network to clarify the understanding of movement patterns in international judo competitions by gender. Analysis of 773 male and 638 female bouts was utilized to identify movements during the approach, gripping, attack (including biomechanical designations), groundwork, defense, and pause phases. Probabilistic neural network and chi-square (χ²) tests modeled and compared frequencies (p ≤ .05). Women (mean [interquartile range]: 9.9 [4; 14]) attacked more than men (7.0 [3; 10]) while attempting a greater number of arm/leg lever (women: 2.7 [1; 6]; men: 4.0 [0; 4]) and trunk/leg lever (women: 0.8 [0; 1]; men: 2.4 [0; 4]) techniques but fewer maximal length-moment arm techniques (women: 0.7 [0; 1]; men: 1.0 [0; 2]). Male athletes displayed one-handed gripping of the back and sleeve, whereas female athletes executed a greater number of groundwork techniques. An optimized probabilistic neural network model, using patterns from the gripping, attack, groundwork, and pause phases, produced an overall prediction accuracy of 76% for discrimination between men and women.

Biomechanical evidence is needed to determine to what extent the use of a mobility assistance dog (AD_Mob) may minimize mechanical loads and muscular demands at the upper limbs among manual wheelchair users. This study quantified and compared upper limb efforts when propelling up a ramp with and without an AD_Mob among manual wheelchair users. Ten manual wheelchair users with a spinal cord injury who own an AD_Mob ascended a ramp with and without their AD_Mob. The movements of the wheelchair and upper limbs were captured and the forces applied at the pushrims were recorded to compute shoulder mechanical loading. Muscular demand of the pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, biceps, and the triceps was normalized against the maximum electromyographic values. The traction provided by the AD_Mob significantly reduced the total force applied at the pushrim and its tangential component while the mechanical effectiveness remained similar. The traction provided by the AD_Mob also resulted in a significant reduction in shoulder flexion, internal rotation, and adduction moments. The muscular demands of the anterior deltoid, pectoralis major, biceps, and triceps were significantly reduced by the traction provided by the AD_Mob. The use of AD_Mob represents a promising mobility assistive technology alternative to minimize upper limb mechanical loads and muscular demands and optimize performance during wheelchair ramp ascent.

This study verified the performance probabilities by mixed martial arts rounds by the same athletes, doing paired comparisons of time–motion and actions before and after 10 y. The sample was composed of 845 Ultimate Fighting Championship rounds of 45 athletes separated into before (M1, age range 34–44 y) and after (M2, age range 44–54 y). Motor-control (takedowns, submissions, chokes, locks, strike actions to the head, and body and leg strikes attempted and landed) and time–motion (high and low intensities and standing and ground times) analyses were done. The main results showed significant differences (P ≤ .05) in total strikes landed (M1 22 [13; 34] > M2 18 [10; 31.7]), total strikes attempted (M1 41 [24.5; 62] > M2 35 [21; 48]), single head strikes attempted (M1 19 [9; 34.5] > M2 16.5 [9; 28]), single body strikes landed (M1 1 [0; 4] > M2 1 [0; 2]), single body strikes attempted (M1 2 [0; 5] > M2 1 [0; 3]), takedowns attempted (M1 1 [0; 2] > M2 1 [0; 2]), standing combat time (M1 2:10.28 [1:38.95] > M2 1:55.56 [1:32.17]), and low-intensity time (M1 2:11.45 [1:38.95] > M2 1:56.26 [1:31.89]). Variables that increased the probability to be associated with over the years were body strikes landed, head strikes landed, total strikes landed, and single strikes attempted, whereas body strikes attempted, head strikes attempted, total strikes attempted, and submission attempted had a negative association with mixed martial arts years of experience. Therefore, M2 athletes should be focused on standing combat time combined with strikes-landed actions, targeting the head—it has the highest potential performance probability and avoid unsuccessful body-strike attempts and submissions—which has the lowest potential performance probability over 10 years.

The aim of the present study was to compare the differences in joint coordination patterns and variability in the lower extremity between the first and second landing phases of the drop jump. Eighteen resistance-trained men (age: 22.8 ± 1.8 years) performed drop jumps from a height of 0.40 m. An eight-camera motion capture system was utilized to record kinematic trajectories. Modified vector coding technique and circular statistics were used to determine the coordination pattern and variability of the following joint couples during the first and second landings: hip frontal–knee frontal (HfKf), hip sagittal–knee frontal (HsKf), hip sagittal–knee sagittal (HsKs), knee frontal–ankle frontal (KfAf), knee sagittal–ankle frontal (KsAf), and knee sagittal–ankle sagittal (KsAs). Statistical differences in the distribution frequencies of coupling angles and variability between the dominant and nondominant limbs across the two landing phases were compared using two-way repeated analysis of variance and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests. During the second landing phase, the proportion of HsKs, KfAf, and KsAs showing in-phase coordination was reduced but the proportion of KfAf and KsAs showing proximal joint (knee) coordination was increased (p < .05). Significant differences in bilateral asymmetry were observed only for the HfKf and KfAf patients (p < .05). HsKs, KfAf, and KsAf varied considerably during the second landing phase (p < .05). Joint coordination patterns during the second landing phase of the drop jump differed considerably from those during the first landing phase, thereby increasing the risk of knee and ankle injuries.