Author:

Keywords:

swimming, race analysis, visual impairment

Abstract:

COMPARISON OF RACE PARAMETERS FOR VISUAL IMPAIRED SWIMMERS Martens, J.1, Einarsson, I.2, Daly, D.1 1: KULeuven, Department of Kinesiology (Leuven, Belgium) 2: University of Iceland Introduction Visually impaired (VI) swimmers compete in 3 classes (S11, S12, S13) based on examination by an ophthalmologists. Little research has been done, and mostly in freestyle, to investigate the effects of level of VI on performance. The aim of this study was to compare race parameters between VI classes. Methods A video race analysis was conducted at the 2009 European championships in the 100-m freestyle and 100-m breaststroke events for the 3 visually impaired classes in both males and females. In total, 26 male VI swimmers and 23 female VI swimmers participated in the 100m freestyle race. 18 men and 13 women VI swimmers competed in the 100m breaststroke race. Final time (FT), stroke rate (SR), stroke length (SL), clean swimming speed (CSS), start time (ST) and turn time (TT) were determined and statistically evaluated. Results Statistical differences (95% confidence interval) were found in men between S11 swimmers and S12 and S13 swimmers in the 100m freestyle race on ST, CSS, SL, TT and FT. There was no statistical difference in SR. No statistical differences were found between S12 and S13 swimmers in any of these parameters. The exact same results were found in female 100m freestyle races, except that there was also no statistical difference between S11 and S13 women in ST. In the 100m breaststroke event, there was only a statistical difference in men in ST and SL between S11 and S13, and in FT between S11 and S12/S13. In women, there was no statistical difference between the classes in any of the parameters. Discussion Daly et at. (2009) stated that a lack of vision can affect the potential to monitor one’s race speed patterns via visual feedback. The current classification system assumes decreased physical performance with decreased visual function. The results of present study show no difference in race parameters in the 100m freestyle race between classes S12 and S13, both in men and in women. The lower number of participants on the 100m breaststroke in some classes, especially in women could explain why no statistical differences in race parameters were found in this event. This might also reflect the technical difficulty in learning breaststroke and a greater need for a specific body profile to be successful in breaststroke. Conclusion There are little or no differences in the swimming performance of classes S12 and S13. Seeing only a little bit is enough to swim the race in an optimal manner. The impact of a visual impairment on swimming should be further investigated to move from a medical classification procedure to an evidence bases system, following the IPC position stand on classification (Tweedy & Vanlandewijck, 2011). References Daly, D., Malone, L., Burkett, B., Gabrys, T., Satkunskiene, D. (2009). Is sight the main deterrent to race performance in visually impaired competitive swimmers?. Facta Universitatis. Series Physical Education and Sport, 7 (1), 1-15. Tweedy, S., Vanlandewijck, Y. (2011). International Paralympic Committee Position Stand -Background and scientific rationale for Classification in Paralympic Sport. British journal of sports medicine, 45 (4), 259-69.