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Medicine
The American Journal of Sports
http://ajs.sagepub.com/content/18/4/400
The online version of this article can be found at:

DOI: 10.1177/036354659001800412
1990 18: 400 Am J Sports Med
Anatol Podolsky, Kenton R. Kaufman, Thomas D. Cahalan, Sergei Y. Aleshinsky and Edmund Y.S. Chao
The relationship of strength and jump height in figure skaters

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400
The
relationship
of
strength
and
jump height
in
figure
skaters
ANATOL
PODOLSKY,* MD,
KENTON R.
KAUFMAN,* PhD,
THOMAS D.
CAHALAN,* PT,
SERGEI Y.
ALESHINSKY,† PhD,
AND
EDMUND Y. S.
CHAO,*‡
PhD
From the
*
Biomechanics
Laboratory, Department
of
Orthopedics, Mayo Clinic/Mayo
Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota,
and the
t
United States
Figure Skating
Association
Sports
Medicine and Science
Program,
Colorado
Springs,
Colorado
ABSTRACT
Eighteen junior
elite
figure
skaters were filmed while
performing
axel and double axel
jumps.
These same
skaters were assessed for
strength
of the
shoulders,
knees, and
hips
at
multiple angular
velocities
using
a
Cybex
II
system.
The
height
of the
jumps
was
signifi-
cantly
correlated with the
strength
data. Knee exten-
sion at 240
deg/sec
and shoulder abduction at 300
deg/sec
were shown to be the most
important strength
parameters
in
determining
the
height
of the
jump.
This
information
may
be useful for
designing strength
train-
ing programs
for
figure
skaters.
Figure skating
is a
popular
winter
Olympic sport, attracting
more and more new
competitors every year.
The
growing
roster of the United States
Figure Skating
Association is an
indication of this
popularity.
United States
figure
skaters do
quite
well in international
competitions.
In the last
Olympic
Games, however,
the Gold Medal in the womens event was
taken
by
the East Germans. The Soviets
traditionally
dom-
inate the
pairs
and dance
competitions.
The success of
eastern bloc countries in
figure skating
as well as in other
sports
is
partly
attributed to their
well-developed sports
science research
programs
and continued
development
of
new and better
training
methods.
Figure skating
is an art as well as a
sport.
It is
judged
on
technical merit and artistic
impression.
One of the corner-
stones of a
figure skating performance
is the
height
of a
skaters
jump.
A
well-performed jump
of
significant height
may
raise the technical merit mark as well as the artistic
impression
score. In contrast to
speed skating
or
high jump-
ing,
there are no
objective
measurements in
figure skating.
Nevertheless, physical qualities
that affect
speed
and
jump-
ing
contribute a
great
deal to the success of a skater. The
height
of the
jump
is
probably
determined
by
the
physical
abilities of a
skater, provided
that the skater has the tech-
nical skills
necessary
to
successfully complete
the
jump.
Although
McMaster et al. have
presented
a method of
endurance
training
for
skaters,
the scientific literature does
not contain
any description
of the
specific qualities
needed
for
higher jumps
in
figure skating.
This
study
was thus conducted to
1)
test the
hypothesis
that the
height
of
jumps
in
figure skating
is related to muscle
strength
about the
knee, hip,
and
shoulder,
and
2) determine
the
specific type
of
strength
most
important
in
regard
to
muscle
groups
and
speed
of exercise.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Subjects
Eighteen skaters,
selected for
participation
in the Elite
Junior
Sports
Science
Development Camps by
the United
States
Figure Skating Association,
were the
subjects
of the
study.
Each athlete was selected based on
skating ability
and the
potential
for
becoming
a world class
competitor.
There were 8 females
(age,
14.7 1.6
years; height,
1.58
0.05
meters;
and
weight,
53.4 4.6
kg)
and 10 males
(age,
17.5 1.6
years; height,
1.69 0.09
meters;
and
weight,
64.7
10.1
kg).
Strength testing
The
dynamic strength
of shoulder abduction and
adduction,
hip
flexion and
extension,
and knee flexion and extension
was assessed
using
a
Cybex
II isokinetic
dynamometer sys-
t
Address
correspondence
and
repnnt requests
to. Edmund Y. S Chao,
PhD, Biomechanics
Laboratory, Department
of
Orthopedics, Mayo Clinic/Mayo
Foundation, Rochester, MN 55905
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401
tem
(Cybex,
Division of
Lumex, Inc., Ronkonkoma, NY).
Data was recorded with the
Cybex
Dual Channel Recorder
as well as the
Cybex
Data Reduction
Computer (CDRC).
The
torque
channel was
electronically damped
at a
setting
of 2.
Shoulders were tested in the
upright,
seated
position
with
the aid of the
Cybex Upper Body Exercising
and
Testing
(UBXT)
device. The shoulder was isolated from the
elbow,
wrist,
and hand
by keeping
the elbow flexed to 90
using
a
thermoplastic splint.
In order to achieve maximum abduc-
tion with the arm in this
position,
motion in the
plane
of
the
scapula
was tested. Test
speeds
used were
60, 180,
and
300
deg/sec.
Hip
and knee
testing employed
the
positions
described in
the
Cybex
users manual. The
hip
was tested at
speeds
of
240 and 300
deg/sec
and the knee at
speeds
of
60, 120, 180,
240,
and 300
deg/sec.
Data collected
by
the CDRC included
peak torque, angle
at which the
peak torque occurred, angle-specific torque,
and
torque
as a
percentage
of
body weight.
All
torque
meas-
urements were recorded with
gravity
correction.
Angle spe-
cific
torques
were assessed at 30 and 120 of abduction for
the
shoulder,
30 and 90 of flexion for the
hip,
and 30 and
60 of flexion for the knee.
Kinematic
analysis
Two
high speed, 16 mm, pin-registered, electronically phase-
locked,
Redlake LoCam cameras were
positioned
at 90 from
each other. The frame rate for each camera was set nomi-
nally
at 50 frames
per
second and was calibrated
internally
in each camera
by timing
diodes
flashing
at 100 Hz. A three-
factor shutter allowed for
exposure
time of
1/150
seconds.
Eastman Ectachrome
High Speed
7250 film was used.
Before
filming
the
skaters,
a 7 x 12 m field of view of the
cameras was calibrated
by filming
a set of calibration frames
with markers
positioned
at known distances from each other.
After an
adequate warm-up period,
the skaters were asked
to
perform
axels and double axels within this field of view.
Each
jump
was
analyzed through
the use of a
computerized
digitizing system consisting
of a
Vanguard projector,
Cal-
comp digitizing table,
and a Data General
Eclipse MV/1000
minicomputer.
The
points digitized
included
hands, wrists,
elbows, shoulders, ankles, knees, hips, tips
of the
toes, navel,
xiphoid process, ears,
and the
top
of the head.
A
custom-designed system
of
computer programs
was used
to
provide
a mathematical
description
of the three-dimen-
sional motion of the
body segments.
The model
generated
by
the
system
consisted of 15 links
corresponding
to the
body segments
of
hands, forearms, upper arms, feet, legs,
thighs, head, chest,
and
pelvis.
The
computer program
was
used to calculate the maximum
height
of the center of mass
during
the
jumps.
The center of mass of each
body segment
was estimated
using anthropometric
data based on a
large
anthropometric study
and a
regression
formula for deter-
mining
the centers of mass. For the
purposes
of this
study,
the vertical distance between the
top
of the skaters
body
mass center
trajectory
in
flight
and the
body
mass center
position
at the instant of take-off was used for
analysis.
Statistical methods
The
height
of the
jump
was normalized for the
weight
of the
athlete
by converting
the
jump height
to
potential energy,
i.e.,
mass x
gravity
x
height
of the
body
mass center.
Thus,
all statistical
analyses compared
the
peak strength
of the
athlete,
in terms of
energy,
to the
potential energy
that was
generated during
the
jump.
Two statistical
approaches
were
used to determine the
relationships
between the
height
of
the
jump (dependent variable)
and the
strength
of the ath-
lete
(independent variable).
Linear
least-squares regression
was used to assess the
strength
of the
best-fitting relationship
between the inde-
pendent
and
dependent
variables. The
strength
of the rela-
tionship
was determined from
1)
the correlation
coefficient,
r,
which
represented
an index of association between
strength
and
jump height, 2) the F-statistic
value,
which
tested the null
hypothesis
that there is no
significant
rela-
tionship
between the
variables,
and
3)
the
P-level,
which
gave
the
probability
of
getting
a
greater
F-statistic than that
observed if the null
hypothesis
is true. The P-level can also
be referred to as the
significance probability.
Stepwise regression
was used to select the
speed
at which
there was the
highest
correlation of
strength
for each
joint
with the
height
of the
jump.
It was also used to determine
the most
important parameters influencing
the
height
of the
jump.
All
strength parameters
were considered for
entry
into
the model. The
stepwise technique proceeded by adding
variables one
by
one into the model. At each
point,
the F-
statistic was assessed for a variable to be added-that vari-
able needed to be
significant
at the 0.05 level for
entry. By
using
the
stepwise method,
after a variable was
added,
we
could look at all of the variables
already
in the model and
delete
any
not
producing
a
significant
F-statistic.
RESULTS
Comparison
of
joint speed
Stepwise regression
was used to select the
joint speed
most
highly
correlated with the
jump height.
The
highest
corre-
lations
(P
<
0.01)
were obtained for knee extension at 240
deg/sec, hip
extension at 240
deg/sec,
shoulder abduction at
300
deg/sec,
and shoulder adduction at 300
deg/sec.
These
speeds
were the same for both the
single
and double axel.
The
speeds
for maximum correlation of
hip
flexion
strength
with
jump height
varied. The
highest
correlation
(P
<
0.01)
between the
hip
flexion
strength
and the
height
of the
single
axel was obtained at 240
deg/sec,
whereas the 300
deg/sec
test
speed
was more
highly
correlated for the double axel.
The
strength
measured at these
speeds
was used for subse-
quent analyses.
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402
Relationships
between
jump height
and
strength
Linear
regression analysis
was used to determine the
strength
of the
relationship
between each
strength parame-
ter and the
jump height.
The results for a
single
axel are
shown in
Figure
1. There was a
positive
correlation between
all
strength parameters
and the
jump height. Further,
all of
the correlations were
significant (P
<
0.01).
The results for
a double axel are shown in
Figure
2. Once
again,
there was
a
positive
correlation between all
strength parameters
and
the double axel
height. Likewise,
all correlations were
sig-
nificant
(P
<
0.01).
Overall,
the same trends were observed for both the
single
and double axel. The most
significant relationship
observed
was for knee extension,
whereas the least
significant
rela-
tionships
were for shoulder adduction and
hip
extension.
The
strength
of the
relationships
for shoulder abduction and
hip
flexion were
interchanged.
It can be also seen that the
strength
of the
relationship
between the
jump height
and
the
strength parameters
was
stronger
for the double axel
than for the
single axel,
with the
exception
of knee exten-
sion. The linear
relationships (expressed
in correlation coef-
ficient, r,
and the
F-statistic)
between each of the
strength
parameters
and the
single
axel and double axel
heights
are
summarized in Tables 1 and
2, respectively.
Important strength parameters
Stepwise regression
was used to rank the order of
importance
of the
strength parameters
for
jump height.
The correlation
coefficient
squared, r2,
measures the
power
of the linear
relationship
between the athletes
joint strength
and the
jump height.
The results for a
single
axel show that the most
important strength parameter (primary parameter)
was knee
extension
(Table 3), accounting
for 79.2%
(square
of the
partial
correlation
coefficient)
of the
variability
in the
single
axel
jump height.
The second most
important parameter
(secondary parameter)
was shoulder
abduction, accounting
for an additional 5.5%
(square
of the
partial
correlation
coefficient)
of the
variability
in
jump height. Together,
these
parameters
accounted for 85%
(square
of the model corre-
lation coefficient)
of the
variability
in the
single
axel
height.
None of the other
strength parameters
contributed
signifi-
cantly
to the
single
axel
jump height.
The results for a double
axel,
once
again,
show that the
most
important strength parameter (primary parameter)
was knee extension (Table 4).
This
parameter
accounted for
SHOULDER &dquo;IDUCTION ro&dquo;out: IN m
- -
Figure
1. Correlation between
single
axel
height (reported
as
potential energy)
and
strength:
knee
extension, hip flexion, hip
extension,
shoulder
abduction, and shoulder adduction.
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403
Figure
2. Correlation between double axel
height (reported
as
potential energy)
and
strength:
knee extension, hip flexion, hip
extension, shoulder abduction, and shoulder adduction.
TABLE 1
Linear
regression: Single
axel
height
versus
strength
77.4%
(square
of the
partial
correlation coefficient) of the
variability
in the double axel. The second most
important
parameter (secondary parameter)
was shoulder
abduction,
accounting
for an additional 7.8%
(square
of the
partial
correlation coefficient) of the
variability
in
jump height.
These two
parameters
accounted for 86.5%
(square
of the
model correlation coefficient)
of the
variability
in the double
axel
height.
None of the other
strength parameters
contrib-
uted
significantly
to the double axel
height.
TABLE 2
Linear
regression:
Double axel
height
versus
strength
TABLE 3
Stepwise regression analysis
to determine the most
significant
strength parameters correlating
with
single
axel
jump height
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404
TABLE 4
Stepwise regression analysis
to determine the most
significant
strength parameters correlating
with double axel
jump height
DISCUSSION
An axel is one of the main
figure skating jumps.
Performance
of a double axel is a
required
element of the Gold test. A
skater who has
passed
the Gold test
may compete
on the
senior level at the U. S. National
Championships.
The
height
of the
jump
determines the
length
of time in
flight. High
jumps
allow
multiple
revolutions and contribute to
higher
performance
scores.
Knowledge
of the axel
jumping technique
is
necessary
to
elucidate the relevance of
testing joint strength.
The
per-
formance
sequence
is shown in
Figure
3. The take-off is
done from the forward outside
edge
of the left skate. Before
take-off,
the free
(right) leg
and both arms are
swung up
and forward to
help
accelerate the
body
mass center. The
support (left)
knee and
hip
are thus
extending
and the free
(right) hip
is
flexing forcefully
as both arms abduct at the
shoulder
joints
to achieve
greater
vertical
velocity
and
height.
At the moment of
take-off,
both arms and the free
(right)
lower
extremity
decelerate to combine their momen-
tum with that of the rest of the
body,
which means that the
arms now adduct at the shoulders and the free
(right) hip
extends.
During flight,
a skater
completes
1.5 revolutions
for a
single
axel and 2.5 revolutions for a double axel. This
is
accomplished by &dquo;pulling
in&dquo; the arms and the free lower
extremity, i.e., bringing
them closer to the center of the
vertical axis of rotation. This action decreases the skaters
moment of
inertia,
in turn
increasing
the
angular velocity,
since the
angular
momentum is conserved
during
free
flight.
The skater lands
by &dquo;checking
out&dquo; or
opening
the arms and
free lower
extremity,
thus
slowing
down
(decelerating)
the
angular velocity,
and then
stepping
down onto the back
outside
edge
of the
right
skate and
holding
this
position
for
approximately
1 second.
The
Cybex
tested
strength speed,
which had the
highest
correlation with the
jump heights.
The
Cybex
results are
important
since
they
reflect the most
specific speeds
for the
movements of interest.
Interestingly,
the
joint angular
ve-
locities of a recent
Olympic
Gold
medalist,
calculated from
the same
filming technique
used in this
study,
were
approx-
imately
the same as those
reported
as
being important
in
this
study.
For our
skater,
the
hip
extension
speed
was 193
deg/sec
and the knee extension
speed
was 263
deg/sec.2
The results of this
study
show that the
height
of the
single
and double axel is
significantly
correlated with the muscle
strength
of the shoulder in abduction and
adduction,
the
knee in
extension,
and the
hip
in extension and flexion. The
hypothesis
of this
study, i.e.,
that
strength
is related to the
height
of
figure skating jumps,
was thus
proven.
Ankle
strength
was not included as a
parameter
because
of the stiff nature of the
figure skating
boot. Plantar flexion
is restricted
during take-off, limiting
the
plantarflexors
to
an isometric or
support
function.
Probably,
the most
significant finding
of this
study
is the
relatively high
contribution of shoulder abduction
strength
at 300
deg/sec
to the
height
of the
jumps. During
the
traditional on ice
training method,
in which
jump repetitions
Figure
3. The axel
technique: 1) just
before take-off, 2)
the moment of
take-off, 3) midflight,
and
4)
the
landing.
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405
are
performed
to
develop strength,
the muscles of the lower
extremities contract
specifically
with the load of the skaters
body
mass. In
contrast,
shoulder abduction is
performed
with no extra load
(except
for the
weight
of the
upper
extremities).
The shoulder abductors are at more of a dis-
advantage
in terms of
progressive
resistance.
Indeed, single
skaters
may
have
greatly developed
lower
extremity strength
and
relatively poorly developed upper extremity strength.~
7
Therefore,
shoulder abductors are a
relatively
untouched
resource for
specific strength development
and constitute
the
greatest potential
for
increasing
the
height
of
figure
skating jumps. Strength training
of the shoulders
may
make
quadruple jumps
a
reality
for national and international
competitors
in the near future.
Skaters
generally
do no
weight training
off the ice. There-
fore,
a
singles figure skater,
as mentioned
above, usually
develops
his or her
strength by repeating
the
jump
on the
ice
during regular skating free-style
sessions (45 minutes,
2
or 3 times a
day,
10 to 20
repetitions
of each
jump per
session).
Such a method is
angle, speed,
and muscle
group
specific, but, physiologically,
the neuromuscular
signal
of
each
jump
is too short and not
necessarily
of maximal
magnitude.4
In order to
develop strength
faster and to a
greater degree,
one must use the
principle
of
progressive
resistance,
that
is,
the need to
&dquo;continually
increase the
stress
placed
on the muscle as it becomes
capable
of
produc-
ing greater
force.3 To achieve this on the ice
by adding
weights
to a skater would increase the
danger
of
injuries
and
might
interfere with technical skill.
Specifically designed
weight training
off the ice is safer and
may actually help
a
skater to
acquire
better skills.
Weight training may
also
shorten the time
necessary
to
develop adequate strength
for
higher jumps. Development
of this
strength
takes several
years by
the traditional methods of
jump repetition
on the
ice.
Weight training
will allow faster
progress
in
learning
multiple
revolution
jumps
and
may
also reduce the rate of
overuse
injuries frequently
sustained
by figure
skaters.8,9
9
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors thank Drs. Sarah Smith and Steven Fleck and
Mr. Frank Ramirez for their invaluable contributions to this
study.
This
study
was funded in
part by
a
grant
from the United
States
Figure Skating
Association.
REFERENCES
1
Aleshinsky
SY
Modeling
of the 3-dimensional human movements Doctoral
dissertation, Moscow State
University, USSR, 1977
2
Aleshinsky SY, Smith SL, Jansen LB, et al
Companson
of biomechanical
parameters
demonstrated
by
Bnan Boitano in
triple
and double axel
jumps.
Proc Am Soc Biomech 201, 1988
3 Fleck SJ, Kraemer WJ
Designing
Resistance
Training Programs.
Cham-
paign, IL, Human Kinetics Books, 1987
4 Green HJ.
Glycogen depletion patterns
in continuous and intermittent ice
skating.
Med Sci
Sports
10 183-187, 1978
5 Isolated-Joint
Testing
and Exercise A Handbook for
Using Cybex
II and
the UBXT. Ronkonkoma, NY, Cybex,
1980
6 McMaster WC, Liddle S, Walsh J
Conditioning program
for
competitive
figure skating
Am J
Sports
Med 7. 43-47, 1979
7. Niinima V
Figure skating
What do we know about it?
Physician Sportsmed
10(1). 51-56, 1982
8 Smith AD
Figure skating,
in Schneider RC, Kennedy JC, Plant ML
(eds)
Sports Injuries. Mechanisms, Prevention, and Treatment Baltimore, Wil-
liams & Wilkins, 1985, pp
516-531
9 Smith AD, Micheli LJ
Injuries
in
competitive figure
skaters
Physician
Sportsmed 10(1) 36-47, 1982
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