Anaerobic work capacity in elite wheelchair athletes

To study the anaerobic work capacity in wheelchair athletes, 67 elite wheelchair athletes (50 male) were studied in a 30-second sprint test on a computer-controlled wheelchair ergometer during the World Championships and Games for the Disabled in Assen (1990). The experimental set-up (ergometer, protocol) proved to be adequate in terms of power output (P30, P5) velocity and heart rate. Male and female athletes were comparable with respect to personal characteristics (age, body weight, training hours). Track athletes (classified in 4 different functional classes) showed a class-related mean power output (P30: mean power produced during the 30-second sprint period) of 23, 68, 100, and 138 W for the male athletes (n = 38) and 38, 77, and 76 W for females in the upper three classes (n = 10). Sprint power was low for the group of subjects with cerebral palsy (35 W; mixed, n = 6) and relatively high for the amputee group (121 W; mixed, n = 6), female basketball players (81 W; n = 5), and two male field athletes (110 W). Significant differences between male and female athletes were found for P30 and P5 (highest mean power output over any of the six 5-second periods). As was to be expected, mean maximum heart rate in the sprint test varied significantly between the track groups from 112 (high lesion group) to 171 beats/minute(-1) (low lesion group) but not for both genders. The lower P30 in the T1 and T2 groups must be explained not only by the reduced functional muscle mass and impaired coordination but also by phenomena of cardiovascular dysfunction. Based on the performance parameters, the functional classification of the track athletes into four groups seems adequate. P30 was significantly associated with the personal characteristics of gender and hours of training. A significant correlation was found between P30 and sprint performance times for 200 meters (r = -0.79). No correlation was found between either of the forms of power output and the marathon times. Anaerobic wheelchair work capacity can be adequately studied with the 30-second sprint test that was used in this study. Anaerobic work capacity is highly variable among elite wheelchair athletes with different disabilities and from different sports disciplines and appeared quite strongly influenced by functionality, hours of training, and gender.