The influence of different twists in the forward and backward somersault on increased landing asymmetries/Utjecaj razlicitih rotacija oko uzduzne osi u izvedbama salta naprijed i natrag na povecanu asimetriju doskoka

• Published in: Kinesiology 2013, Vol.45 (1), p.73
• Main Authors: Marinsek, Miha, Cuk, Ivan
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Subjects: Gymnastics; Gymnasts; Kinesiology; Methods; Physiological aspects
• ISSN: 1331-1441

The aim of this research was to determine if additional twists in the forward and backward somersaults increase landing asymmetries. Twelve gymnasts from the Slovenian national artistic gymnastics team took part in the research. Each gymnast performed various stretched forward and backward somersaults with or without a twist. We used several dynamic and kinematic variables to assess landing asymmetry. Reaction forces and pressure values under each foot were collected with the Parotec insole pressure measurement system. The data was normalized by the gymnast's body mass. Ariel Performance Analysis System was used to calculate the kinematic variables. Our results showed that most of the forward and backward somersaults with twists on the floor landed asymmetrically (17-50%). Somersaults with 1/2 twist landed 50-58% asymmetrically, somersaults with 1/1 twist 67-75% and somersaults with 3/2 twist 58-83%. The asymmetries on landing rose with the task complexity. The asymmetries were displayed in the time of landing, vertical hip velocity at touchdown, maximum force and pressure distribution. The landing time differences between the legs were up to -13.09 ± 12.98 ms and up to 4.08 ± 7.61 ms for the forward and backward somersaults, respectively. The hip velocity at touchdown differed between the hips up to 0.71 m/s for forward and 0.54 m/s for the backward somersaults. Maximal force difference between the feet normalized by body mass ranged from 0.98 to 1.03 times body weight. The forward landings showed a bigger pressure on the heels at the moment of the biggest ground reaction force in comparison to the backward landings. Key words: acrobatics, mistakes, somersaults, twists, leading leg Cilj je ovog istrazivanja bio utvrditi povecavaju li dodatne rotacije oko uzduzne osi asimetricnost doskoka prilikom izvedbe salta naprijed i natrag. U istrazivanje je bilo ukljuceno dvanaest slovenskih reprezentativaca u sportskoj gimnastici. Svaki je gimnasticar izveo razlicite inacice opruzenih salta s rotacijom oko uzduzne osi ili bez nje. U analizi je koristeno nekoliko dinamickih i kinematickih varijabla da bi se utvrdila asimetricnost doskoka. Vrijednosti reaktivnih sila i sila opterecenja ispod svakog stopala prikupljene su sustavom Parotec Insole Pressure Measurement. Podaci su normalizirani za tjelesnu masu gimnasticara. Ariel Performance Analysis System je koristen za izracunavanje kinematickih varijabla. Rezultati su pokazali da vecina izvedenih salta naprijed i nat