Physiological assessment of Saudi athletes

This study was aimed at assessing the physiological responses of Saudi male athletes to maximal exercise testing. Seventy five national athletes representing nine different sports and fourteen healthy controls were subjected to graded bicycle ergometer tests, during which cardiorespiratory and metabolic functions were monitored and recorded. The results of this study indicate that the maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) values for the Saudi athletes were not significantly different from those of controls. The cyclists, however, attained the highest VO2max with a mean of 55.05 ml.kg-1.min-1 followed by the middle distance runners (X = 53.17) and the long distance runners (X = 51.19). Comparison of the Saudi athletes with some previously reported international standards revealed that the Saudi athletes had a VO2max that was lower than their respective French, Swedish, Belgian, Norwegian, Italian, Canadian or American athletes.