Analysis of Pacing Behaviors on Mass Start Speed Skating

The mass start speed skating (MSSS) is a new event for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games. Considering that the event rankings were based on points gained on laps, it is worthwhile to investigate the pacing behaviors on each lap that directly influence the skater's ranking at the end of the race. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study investigating the pacing behavior on the MSSS. The aim of this study was to analyze the pacing behaviors and performance on MSSS regarding skaters' level (SL), competition stage (semi-final/final) (CS), and gender (G). All the male and female races in the World Cup and World Championships were analyzed during the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 seasons. As a result, a total of 601 skaters (male = 350 and female = 251) from 36 games (male = 21 and female = 15) were observed. The one-way ANOVA for repeated measures was used to compare skaters' pacing behavior on each lap, and the three-way ANOVA for repeated measures was used to identify the influence of SL, CS, and G on skaters' pacing behaviors and total time spent. In general, the results showed that the pacing behaviors from fast to slow were group one (laps 4, 8, 12, 15, 16), group two (laps 5, 9, 13, 14), group three (laps 3, 6, 7, 10, 11), and group four (laps 1 and 2) (p ≤ 0.001 for all groups). For CS, the total time spent in the final was less than the semi-final (p ≤ 0.001). For SL, top-level skaters spent less total time than the middle-level and low-level skaters (p ≤ 0.002), while there was no significant difference between the middle and low levels (p = 0.214). For G, the male skaters spent less total time than females on all laps (p ≤ 0.048). Current findings could help coaching staff to better understand the pacing behaviors regarding SL, CS, and G. In particular, the identified performance trends may allow controlling for pacing strategy and decision making before and during the race.