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Updated: Oct 28, 2026
Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator (TSPAS)
Published on: July 30, 2020
Speed-Accuracy Dissociation in Fencing: Performance Fatigability Without a Detectable Decline in Touch Accuracy: An
Mirko Colombo1, Gian Mario Migliaccio2, Domenico Martone3
1Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health (SCIBIS), Università degli Studi di Milano, 20133 Milan, Italy.
Background:
It remains unclear whether physiological load affects fencing accuracy to the same extent as movement speed and whether a shortened protocol can reproduce the outcomes of a full repeated-sprint protocol.
Methods:
Ten fencers (foil/épée; 7 men, 3 women; 16-30 years) completed anthropometric, handgrip strength, and maximal heart rate assessments on Day 1; a target-hitting task at baseline and at 50% and 85% of maximal heart rate using two fencing gestures on Day 2; and ten 16 m shuttles (4-2-4-2-4 m), separated by 8 s of recovery and each ending with a lunge to a graded target, on Day 3.
Results:
Shuttle time increased non-linearly, reaching an estimated maximum at shuttle 7.27 (95% CI: 6.15-11.34), whereas no significant trend in touch performance was detected across shuttles (p = 0.988). On Day 2, accuracy did not differ across heart rate conditions but differed between gestures (p < 0.001). On Day 3, heart rate reached 84.60-93.45% of maximal heart rate. The seven-shuttle fatigue index showed close agreement with the full-protocol index (ICC = 0.96; limits of agreement: -2.58 to 1.25), indicating reproducibility rather than criterion validity.
Conclusions:
Performance fatigability was expressed as slower movement, with no detectable decline in touch accuracy; the underlying physiological or neuromuscular mechanisms were not assessed. Seven shuttles emerged as a candidate protocol length, which requires test-retest reliability and independent validation before it can replace the full protocol.
