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CORRELATIONS BETWEEN PHYSIOLOGICAL VARIABLES AND PERFORMANCE IN HIGH LEVEL CROSS COUNTRY OFF ROAD CYCLISTS. |
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Impellizzeri FM, Marcora SM, Rampinini E, Mognoni P, Sassi A.
OBJECTIVES: To examine the relations between maximal and submaximal indices ofaerobic fitness and off road cycling performance in a homogeneous group of highlevel mountain bikers. METHODS: 12 internationally competitive mountain bikerscompleted the study. Maximum oxygen uptake (Vo(2max)), peak power output (PPO),power output (PO), and oxygen uptake (Vo(2)) at first (VT) and second (RCT)ventilatory thresholds were measured in the laboratory, and correlated with racetime during a cross country circuit race. RESULTS: The only physiologicalindices of aerobic fitness correlated with off road cycling performance were POand Vo(2) at RCT when normalised to body mass (r = -0.63 and r = -0.66,respectively; p<0.05). VT, Vo(2max), and PPO were not correlated to performancein this homogeneous group of high level mountain bikers. CONCLUSIONS: Theresults of this study suggest that submaximal indices of aerobic fitness such asPO and Vo(2) at RCT are more important determinants of off road cyclingperformance than maximal indices such as PPO and Vo(2max). This study confirmsthe importance of body mass for mountain biking performance. As aerobic fitnessexplained only 40% of the variance, other physiological and technical factorsshould be investigated, as they may be important determinants of cross countryperformance among elite mountain bikers.
Br J Sports Med. 2005 Oct;39(10):747-51. |
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