Contribution of Equipment to Performance: Investigating Skate Metrics and Their Relationship to Race Times in...

The relationship between athletes and equipment in the sport of speed skating is critical. A speed skater's equipment, namely their skates, is an integral part of a dynamic system that facilitates the translation of human motion to on-ice racing. Although it is common practice to customize the setup of long track speed skates, empirical evidence supporting best practices is relatively undocumented. The exploratory nature of this investigation was intended to address two purposes: (i) profiling skate metrics in a competitive cohort of long track speed skaters and (ii) exploring the association between skate metrics and on-ice race times. Two databases were populated for the purpose of analysis: one for skate metrics and another for on-ice race times. Data were linked to the skates of thirty-one provincial-level long track speed skaters (male n = 19; female n = 12). The skate metrics database was populated by a single equipment technician, trained using measurement protocols consistent with the industry's standards, and the metrics were grouped into three categories: (i) boot dimensions (n = 4), (ii) blade dimensions (n = 7), and (iii) skate setup (n = 5). The on-ice race time database was populated and collated using a secondary data source and included an aggregate time based on the mean of the three fastest race times per athlete by distance (500 m, 1000 m, and 1500 m) collected from the 2019-2023 seasons. Statistical analyses were conducted within and across the databases to (i) determine the variation in skate metrics and race times across athletes, and (ii) explore the association between skate metrics and race times. Analysis of the skate metrics database revealed coefficients of variance (CVs) for all metrics including the following: boot dimensions (6.95-8.69%), blade dimensions (0.00-14.24%), and skate setup metrics (8.63-17.05%). Of significant interest were large CVs for pivot point position (14.54%) and blade offset (8.63-17.05%), suggesting inconsistency and a potential lack of understanding of the impact of skate setup on performance. No significant correlations were revealed between skate setup metrics and race times. Across the three race distances, regression models were not statistically significant and explained only a small proportion of variance, highlighting the limited understanding between skate setup metrics and race times in practice. Profiling skate metrics and understanding their relationship with race times provides equipment technicians, coaches, and athletes with a baseline to inform decisions when customizing skate setup.