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Effect of Exercise Intensity on Biathlon Standing Shooting Performance and Rifle Movement during Outdoor Roller
Jørgen Danielsen1, Harri Luchsinger1, Anna Ravndal2
1Centre for Elite Sports Research, Department of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, NORWAY.
Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise
|October 1, 2024
Summary
Higher exercise intensity negatively impacts biathlon shooting accuracy, increasing misses, especially at race-pace efforts. This effect is partly due to increased barrel velocity, suggesting practice at higher intensities is crucial.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Biathlon Performance Analysis
Background:
- Elite biathletes face challenges maintaining shooting accuracy under physiological stress.
- Understanding the impact of exercise intensity on shooting performance is critical for optimizing training and competition strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how varying exercise intensities affect standing shooting performance in elite biathletes.
- To analyze related technical variables, including rifle movements and barrel velocity, during roller ski skating and live shooting.
Main Methods:
- Nineteen elite male biathletes performed roller skiing followed by standing shooting at four exercise intensities: rest, low, moderate, and race-pace.
- Shooting performance (hit/miss, distance from center) and barrel velocity were measured using electronic targets, motion capture, and accelerometers.
- Mediation analyses examined barrel velocity's role in the relationship between exercise intensity and shooting outcomes.
Main Results:
- Increased exercise intensity significantly raised the probability of missing shots, particularly at "race-pace" and "final-lap" efforts compared to rest.
- Distance from center (dC) also increased with higher exercise intensities (P < 0.001).
- Barrel velocity was identified as a partial mediator, explaining some of the performance decline due to exercise intensity.
Conclusions:
- Exercise intensity exerts a clear negative influence on standing shooting performance in biathlon, primarily at high, competition-like levels.
- The observed performance decrement is partially mediated by increased barrel velocity.
- Training specificity suggests incorporating more shooting practice at higher exercise intensities to better prepare athletes for race conditions.
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