Importance and Diagnosis of Flexibility Preparation of Male Sport Climbers

Paweł Draga; Mariusz Ozimek; Marcin Krawczyk; Robert Rokowski; Marcelina Nowakowska; Paweł Ochwat; Adam Jurczak; Arkadiusz Stanula

doi:10.3390/ijerph17072512

Importance and Diagnosis of Flexibility Preparation of Male Sport Climbers

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Apr 7;17(7):2512. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17072512.

Authors

Paweł Draga¹, Mariusz Ozimek², Marcin Krawczyk³, Robert Rokowski⁴, Marcelina Nowakowska⁵, Paweł Ochwat⁶, Adam Jurczak⁶, Arkadiusz Stanula⁷

Affiliations

¹ Kletterverband Österreich, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria.
² Institute of Sport, Department of Track and Field's Sports, University of Physical Education, 31-571 Krakow, Poland.
³ Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Applied Sciences, 33-100 Tarnow, Poland.
⁴ Department of Tourism and Leisure, Section of Mountaineering and Qualified Tourism, University of Physical Education, 31-571 Krakow, Poland.
⁵ Institute of Sport-National Research Institute, 01-982 Warsaw, Poland.
⁶ Department of Theory and Methodology of Physical Education, University of Physical Education, 31-571 Krakow, Poland.
⁷ Institute of Sport Science, Department of Exercise and Sport Performance, The Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education, 40-065 Katowice, Poland.

Abstract

The objective of the study was to verify the relationships between sport skill levels and to identify the tests that accurately diagnose flexibility of sport climbers. This study examined 60 competitive advanced-higher elite male 7b-9a redpoint (RP) climbers. The athletes performed commonly used flexibility tests (stand-and-reach, straddle sit, straddle stand) and climbing-specific flexibility tests. Significant correlations were found between sport skill levels for the straddle stand test (r = -0.48) and the straddle sit test (r = -0.41). No significant correlations were observed between climbing-specific flexibility tests and sports skill level of climbers. Hip abduction evaluated using the straddle sit and straddle stand tests were significantly correlated with sports skill level and thus can be approached as a tool to diagnose flexibility of climbers. Flexibility is very specific and difficult to diagnose in climbing, but it should be developed.

Keywords: climbing-specific fitness tests; flexibility; redpoint; sport climbing.

MeSH terms

Athletes
Athletic Performance*
Humans
Male
Mountaineering*
Range of Motion, Articular*
Sports