Orienteering Running Biomechanics

NewsBot · Jul 2, 2014

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Elite and Amateur Orienteers' Running Biomechanics on Three Surfaces at Three Speeds.
Hébert-Losier K, Mourot L, Holmberg HC.
Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2014 Jun 30.

PURPOSE:
Orienteering athletes must adapt to running on various surfaces, with biomechanics likely contributing to performance. Here, our aims were to identify the impact of athletic status and of surface on the running biomechanics of orienteers.
METHODS:
Seven elite and seven amateur male orienteers ran 20m on road, path, and forest surfaces at maximal, 3.8m/s, and 85% of maximal speeds. A three-dimensional motion capturing system monitored temporal gait and lower-extremity kinematic parameters. Data were analysed using mixed-effects models that considered surface (road-path-forest), group (elite-amateur), and surface-group interaction effects.
RESULTS:
Forest running at maximal speed was slower and involved longer flight and cycle times, greater knee extension at foot-strike, smaller peak hip flexion and dorsi-flexion during stance, and increased ranges of vertical pelvis motion compared to road running. Elites specifically exhibited greater hip extension at foot-strike, larger dorsi-flexion at toe-off, and lower pelvis at foot-strike and toe-off, whereas amateurs displayed longer stance, greater plantar-flexion at foot-strike, and greater knee with lesser ankle motion. At the slowest speed, subjects exhibited greater knee flexion at foot-strike, greater dorsi-flexion at toe-off, shorter strides, smaller peak dorsi-flexion during stance, and greater hip, knee, and vertical pelvis motions on forest than road surfaces. Elites specifically demonstrated shorter stance, flight, and cycle times; whereas amateurs did not.
CONCLUSION:
Orienteering athletes adjusted their running biomechanics when off-road, with distinct adaptations observed in elite versus amateur competitors. The vertical pelvis motion was consistently greater when running off-road, coherent with reported increases in energy expenditure. However, our athletes did not exhibit more crouched lower-limb postures when sprinting in the forest, indicating alternative responses to off-road running than previously proposed by "Groucho" running.
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NewsBot · Apr 12, 2016

Injuries and Associated Risk Factors Among Adolescent Elite Orienteerers: A 26-Week Prospective Registration Study.
von Rosen P et al
J Athl Train. 2016 Apr 11

CONTEXT:
In orienteering, the number of injury-registration studies is limited. Most researchers have used a cross-sectional design during specific events and, therefore, have mainly identified acute injuries.
OBJECTIVE:
To determine the prevalence of injuries by registering acute and overuse injuries in adolescent elite orienteerers over 26 weeks and to study the variation of injury prevalence over the season and the potential risk factors.
DESIGN:
Cohort study.
SETTING:
Two high schools in Sweden with national orienteering teams.
PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS:
All athletes (33 adolescent girls, 31 adolescent boys; age = 17 ? 1 years) from 2 high schools with orienteering teams.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S):
We used a weekly Web-based questionnaire to identify the incidence and prevalence of injuries and training variables. Risk factors for injury were calculated using multiple linear regression techniques.
RESULTS:
The average weekly prevalence of overuse and acute injuries was 35.7% (95% confidence interval = 34.8%, 36.6%) and 1.7% (95% confidence interval = 1.3%, 2.1%), respectively; overuse injuries (78.0%, n = 85) accounted for the majority. The incidence of acute and overuse injuries was highest for the foot/lower leg (48.6%, n = 53), and 71.6% (n = 78) of all injuries affected the foot/lower leg and knee area. Time to the first reported injury was associated with training volume (β = 0.184, P = .001), competition time (β = -0.701, P = .009), running on asphalt roads (β = -0.348, P = .008), and running on forest surfaces and trails (β = -0.331, P = .007), with a model fit of r2 = 0.50 (intercept = 2.196, P < .001). During the study, we observed a weekly increase (0.3%) in the prevalence of overuse injuries in the foot/lower leg (r2 = 0.33, P = .001); the highest prevalence (26.9%) was at the beginning of the competitive season.
CONCLUSIONS:
Overuse injuries, predominately in the foot/lower leg area, were more common than acute injuries in adolescent elite orienteerers.These injuries had the highest prevalence at the beginning of the competitive season; therefore, this period can be seen as a possible risk factor for sustaining overuse injuries in the foot/lower leg.
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NewsBot · Sep 25, 2019

Could a specific exercise programme prevent injury in elite orienteerers? a randomised controlled trial
BodilHalvarssonPhilipvon Rosen
Physical Therapy in Sport; 24 September 2019

Highlights
•In intention-to-treat analysis, no significant differences between control and intervention group were found for substantial injured orienteerers and number of substantial injuries.
•In per-protocol analysis, completing the exercises at least 2 times/week reduced the prevalence of substantial injury by approximately 65%.
•An exercise programme, consisting of balance and jump exercises, performed at least 2 times/week, is suggested to be beneficial for preventing lower extremity injuries in elite orienteerers.
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Objectives
To determine the effect of a specific exercise programme on preventing lower extremity injury in adult elite orienteerers.

Design
Randomised controlled trial.

Setting
Elite orienteering.

Participants
Sixty-two orienteerers (n=32/30, male/female) were randomized and followed over 14 weeks. The intervention group completed an exercise programme 4 times per week.

Main outcome measures
Number of substantial injuries, average substantial injury prevalence and incidence of ankle sprains over the competitive season. In per-protocol analyses, compliance rate to exercise programme was considered.

Results
No significant differences between control and intervention group were found for substantial injured orienteerers (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.19-1.34), number of substantial injuries (OR 0.46, 95% CI 0.18-1.13) and incidence of ankle sprains (p=0.775). In per-protocol analyses, significant differences in substantial injured orienteerers (difference -7.9%, OR 0.25, 95% CI 0.06-0.97) and number of substantial injuries (difference -8.5%, OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.07-0.92) in favour for the orienteers completing the exercises at least twice a week, compared to the control group, were found.

Conclusions
An exercise programme, consisting of balance and jump exercises, is suggested to be performed at least twice per week in order to reduce the risk of lower extremity injury in elite orienteerers.
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NewsBot · Feb 13, 2023

Differences in Coordination Motor Abilities between Orienteers and Athletics Runners
Weronika Machowska-Krupa, Piotr Cych
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 1;20(3):2643

This study aimed to examine the differences in coordination motor abilities between track and field (T&F) runners and foot orienteers (Foot-O). Another purpose of this study was to analyse gender differences in terms of coordination motor abilities. Coordination skills tests were undertaken by 11 Foot-O and 11 T&F runners. Each group consisted of five women and six men who lived in the Lower Silesia region of Poland. The Foot-O group consisted of 11 orienteers aged 24.09 (±4.78) years, with a minimum 10 years of experience, while the T&F group consisted of 11 long-distance runners aged 24.91 (±4.04) years and with a performance level at distances of 5 km and 10 km equivalent to that for orienteering. Some of the participants represented world-class level (e.g., world junior medallists), and most of them were of national elite level. Coordination tests of motor abilities were chosen for their reliability and repeatability and included tests of spatial orientation, rhythmisation of movements, balance and kinaesthetic differentiation. The Foot-O group performed significantly better than the T&F group in terms of some coordination abilities. Differences were observed between the Foot-O and T&F runners in balance ability measured during the "Walk on the bench" test. Further research should be carried out in this area in order to confirm these differences.
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