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Sex differences in elite ski mountaineering aerobic performance
Forrest Schorderet1, Justin Mottet1, Aurélien Lathion1
1Institute of Sport Sciences, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Frontiers in Sports and Active Living
|February 28, 2025
Summary
Elite female ski mountaineering athletes show greater differences in uphill speed compared to males, exceeding differences in maximal oxygen uptake. This highlights unique physiological factors influencing performance in this emerging Olympic sport.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Exercise Physiology
- Winter Sports Research
Background:
- Ski mountaineering (SkiMo) sprints are new Olympic sports in 2026, with limited research, especially on sex differences.
- The sprint format emphasizes uphill performance, making body composition and maximal oxygen consumption (V˙O2max) critical.
- Previous studies have predominantly focused on male athletes, leaving a gap in understanding female physiological parameters.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze sex differences in physiological parameters of elite SkiMo athletes.
- To investigate if differences in vertical velocities (vV) surpass those in V˙O2 at ventilatory thresholds (VT1, VT2) and maximal intensity (MAX).
- To compare body composition and energy cost between elite male and female SkiMo athletes.
Main Methods:
- Twenty elite Swiss SkiMo athletes (6 women, 14 men) participated.
- A graded exercise test to exhaustion was conducted on a 25% sloped treadmill.
- Breath-by-breath gas exchange was measured to determine V˙O2, VT1, VT2, and maximal intensity.
Main Results:
- Female athletes exhibited lower V˙O2 at MAX (13.6% less) and VT2 (15.5% less) compared to males.
- Sex differences in vertical velocities (vV) were larger (16.4% at MAX, 20.1% at VT2) than V˙O2 differences.
- Females had higher fat mass (15.2% vs. 6.6%) and a greater vertical running energy cost at VT2.
Conclusions:
- Uphill velocity differences between elite male and female SkiMo athletes are more pronounced than differences in aerobic capacity.
- Higher fat mass and increased energy cost in females may contribute to the observed sex differences in uphill performance.
- Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms behind these sex differences in SkiMo uphill performance.
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