Nicholas P. Linthorne’s research while affiliated with Brunel University London and other places

Purpose: The effectiveness of the whip-like coordination in throwing might be influenced by the inertial properties of the athlete's arm. This preliminary study investigated the acute effect of attaching mass to the upper arm on the distance achieved in a modified javelin throw. The aim was to identify the optimum upper arm mass that maximizes throw distance. Methods: Three well-trained adult male athletes performed maximum-effort throws with an 800-g javelin training ball. A wide range of masses (0-1.5 kg) were attached to the upper arm and a 2D video analysis was used to obtain measures of the projection variables for each attached mass. Results: All three athletes showed an effect of attached arm mass on throw distance, and with the optimum mass the athlete's throw distance was increased by 2.2 m, 1.2 m, and 0 m (7%, 4%, and 0%) respectively. The optimum mass was specific to the athlete (0.6 kg, 0.2 kg, and 0 kg) and changes in throw distance were mostly due to changes in release velocity rather than changes in release angle or release height. The experimental results were broadly similar to those obtained from a simple 2D mathematical model of throwing. Conclusions: These results indicate that some javelin throwers might see an increase in throwing performance when a mass is attached to their upper arm. However, the relationship between upper arm mass and throwing performance should be investigated further with studies on more athletes, projectiles of different mass, and other throwing events.

The countermovement jump is commonly used to assess an athlete’s neuromuscular capacity. The aim of this study was to identify the mechanism behind the strong correlation between jump height and mechanical power in a countermovement jump. Three athletes each performed between 47 and 60 maximal-effort countermovement jumps on a force platform. For all three athletes, peak mechanical power and average mechanical power were strongly correlated with jump height (r = 0.54–0.90). The correlation between jump height and peak power was largely determined by the correlation between jump height and the velocity at peak power (r = 0.83–0.94) and was not related to the correlation between jump height and the ground reaction force at peak power (r = −0.20–0.18). These results confirm that the strong correlation between jump height and power is an artefact arising from how power is calculated. Power is a compound variable calculated from the product of instantaneous ground reaction force and instantaneous velocity, and application of statistical theory shows that the correlation between jump height and power is artificially inflated by the near-perfect correlation between jump height and the velocity at peak power. Despite this finding, mechanical power might still be useful in assessing the neuromuscular capacity of an athlete.

Producing a high release speed is important in throwing sports such as baseball and the javelin throw. Athletes in throwing sports might be able to achieve a greater throwing speed by improving the effectiveness of the kinetic chain. In this study a two-dimensional computer simulation model of overarm throwing was used to examine the effect of changes in forearm mass and upper arm mass on the release speed of a lightweight (58 g) projectile. The simulations showed that increasing the mass of the forearm decreases release speed, whereas increasing the mass of the upper arm initially increases release speed. For a given forearm mass there is an optimal upper arm mass that produces the greatest release speed. However, the optimal upper arm mass (5–6 kg) is substantially greater than that of an average adult (2.1 kg). These results suggest that athletes might be able to throw faster if they had a stronger tapering of segment mass along the length of their arm. A stronger taper could be readily achieved by attaching weights to the upper arm or by using hypertrophy training to increase the mass of the upper arm. High-speed overarm throwing is a complex three-dimensional movement and this study was a preliminary investigation into the effect of arm segment mass on throwing performance. Further simulation studies using three-dimensional throwing models are needed to generate more accurate insights, and the predictions of the simulation studies should be compared to data from experimental intervention studies of throwing sports.

Purpose: The effectiveness of the whip-like coordination in throwing might be influenced by the inertial properties of the athlete's arm. This preliminary study investigated the acute effect of attaching mass to the upper arm on the distance achieved in a modified javelin throw. The aim was to identify the optimum upper arm mass that maximizes throw distance. Methods: Three well-trained adult male athletes performed maximum-effort throws with an 800-g javelin training ball. A wide range of masses (0-1.5 kg) were attached to the upper arm and a 2D video analysis was used to obtain measures of the projection variables for each attached mass. Results: All three athletes showed an effect of attached arm mass on throw distance, and with the optimum mass the athlete's throw distance was increased by 2.2 m, 1.2 m, and 0 m (7%, 4%, and 0%) respectively. The optimum mass was specific to the athlete (0.6 kg, 0.2 kg, and 0 kg) and changes in throw distance were mostly due to changes in release velocity rather than changes in release angle or release height. The experimental results were broadly similar to those obtained using a simple 2D mathematical model of throwing. Conclusions: These results indicate that some javelin throwers might see an increase in throwing performance when a mass is attached to their upper arm. However, the relationship between upper arm mass and throwing performance should be investigated further with studies on more athletes, projectiles of different mass, and other throwing events.

Sled-towing exercisesare effective at developing sprint acceleration in sports. In a sled-towingexercise the time taken by an athlete to tow the sled over a given distance isaffected by the weight of the sled, the frictional properties of the runningsurface, and the physiological capacities of the athlete. To accurately set thetraining intensity for an athlete, the coach needs a detailed understanding ofthe relationships between these factors. Our study investigated therelationship between the athlete's strength-to-weight ratioand the rate of increase in sled-towing time with increasing sled weight. Twenty-two male athletes performed aone-repetition maximum (1RM) half-squat and sled-towing exercises over 20 mwith sleds of various weights. The strength of the correlation between 1RM half-squat performance (normalized to bodyweight)and the rate of increase in sled-towing time with increasing sled weight was interpreted using the Pearson product-moment correlationcoefficient. As expected, we found substantialinter-athlete differences in the rate of increase in time with increasing sledweight, with a coefficient of variation of about 21% and 17% for sled-towingtimes over 10 and 20 m, respectively. However, the rate of increase in sled-towing time showed nocorrelation with normalized 1RM half-squat performance (r = -0.11, 90% confidence interval = -0.45 to 0.26; and r = -0.02, 90% confidence interval =-0.38 to 0.34, for sled-towing times over 10 and 20 m, respectively). Theseresults indicate thatinter-athlete differences in the rate of increase in sled-towingtime with increasing sled weight are not likely to be due to differences instrength-to-weight ratio. Instead,we recommend the weight of the sled be scaled according to the athlete'spower-to-weight ratio.

The aims of this study were: (1) to quantify the acute effects of ball weight on ball release speed, accuracy, and mechanics in cricket fast bowling; and (2) to test whether a period of sustained training with underweight and overweight balls is effective in increasing a player’s ball release speed. Ten well-trained adult male cricket players performed maximum-effort deliveries using balls ranging in weight from 46% to 137% of the standard ball weight (156 g). A radar gun, bowling target, and 2D video analysis were used to obtain measures of ball speed, accuracy, and mechanics. The participants were assigned to either an intervention group, who trained with underweight and overweight balls, or to a control group, who trained with standard-weight balls. We found that ball speed decreased at a rate of about 1.1 m/s per 100 g increase in ball weight. Accuracy and bowling mechanics were not adversely affected by changes in ball weight. There was evidence that training with underweight and overweight balls might have produced a practically meaningful increase in bowling speed (>1.5 m/s) in some players without compromising accuracy or increasing their risk of injury through inducing poor bowling mechanics. In cricket fast bowling, a wide range of ball weight might be necessary to produce an effective modified-implement training program.

In this study a skilled soccer player performed throws for maximum distance while manipulating the backspin on the ball. A video analysis was used to obtain measures of the ball projection variables. We found that putting greater backspin on the ball did not reduce the player's ability to produce a high projection velocity. Throw distance increased at a rate of about 0.6 m per 1 rev/s increase in backspin, and the experimental data was consistent with the predictions of a mathematical model. We recommend players apply the highest possible backspin when performing a long throw-in.

A fair system of recognizing records in athletics should consider the influence of environmental conditions on performance. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of an altitude of 2250 m on the time for a 100-m sprint. Competition results from the 13 Olympic Games between 1964 and 2012 were corrected for the effects of wind and de-trended for the historical improvement in performance. The time advantage due to competing at an altitude of 2250 m was calculated from the difference between the mean race time at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City and the mean race times at the low-altitude competition venues. The observed time advantage of Mexico City was 0.19 (±0.02) s for men and 0.21 (±0.05) s for women (±90% confidence interval). These results indicate that 100-m sprinters derive a substantial performance advantage when competing at a high-altitude venue and that an altitude of 1000 m provides an advantage equivalent to a 2 m/s assisting wind (0.10 s). Therefore, the altitude of the competition venue as well as the wind speed during the race should be considered when recognizing record performances.

This study investigated the effect of projection angle on the distance attained in a rugby place kick. A male rugby player performed 49 maximum-effort kicks using projection angles of between 20 and 50°. The kicks were recorded by a video camera at 50 Hz and a 2 D biomechanical analysis was conducted to obtain measures of the projection velocity and projection angle of the ball. The player's optimum projection angle was calculated by substituting a mathematical expression for the relationship between projection velocity and projection angle into the equations for the aerodynamic flight of a rugby ball. We found that the player's calculated optimum projection angle (30.6°, 95% confidence limits ± 1.9°) was in close agreement with his preferred projection angle (mean value 30.8°, 95% confidence limits ± 2.1°). The player's calculated optimum projection angle was also similar to projection angles previously reported for skilled rugby players. The optimum projection angle in a rugby place kick is considerably less than 45° because the projection velocity that a player can produce decreases substantially as projection angle is increased. Aerodynamic forces and the requirement to clear the crossbar have little effect on the optimum projection angle. Key PointsThe optimum projection angle in a rugby place kick is about 30°.The optimum projection angle is considerably less than 45° because the projection velocity that a player can produce decreases substantially as projection angle is increased.Aerodynamic forces and the requirement to clear the crossbar have little effect on the optimum projection angle.