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Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the validity and test-retest reliability of a battery of single-joint isometric strength tests, to establish whether the tests could be used for evidence-based classification in wheelchair rugby (WR)., Design: Cross-sectional., Methods: Twenty male WR athletes with impaired arm strength and thirty able-bodied (AB) participants (15 male, 15 female) performed four isometric strength tests. Each test required three 5-s efforts and examined maximal isometric force for flexion and extension around the shoulder and elbow joint. Test validity was established by comparing differences (Cohen's effect sizes [d]) in strength between WR athletes and AB participants. Differences were also explored between male and female AB participants. Twenty AB participants returned for a second visit to establish the test-retest reliability of the test battery., Results: Significantly lower force values were observed for all isometric strength measures in WR athletes compared to AB participants (p≤0.0005; d≥2.14). Female AB participants also produced significantly less force than male AB participants for all joint actions (p≤0.0005; d≥1.93). No significant differences were identified between trials for any measure of strength, with acceptable levels of test-retest reliability reported (ICCs≥0.97, SEM≤19.3N and CV≤8.4%)., Conclusions: The current results demonstrated the validity of a battery of isometric strength tests, suggesting they can be used to reliably infer strength impairment in WR athletes, which is a pre-requisite when working towards evidence-based classification in Paralympic sport., (Copyright © 2019 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: To investigate peripheral (RPE P ) and central (RPE C ) Ratings of Perceived Exertion during wheelchair propulsion in untrained able-bodied (AB) participants, and trained wheelchair rugby athletes with and without cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI)., Design: Cross-sectional study., Methods: 38 participants (AB: n=20; wheelchair rugby athletes with CSCI: n=9; without CSCI: n=9) completed an incremental wheelchair propulsion test to exhaustion on a motorised treadmill. Gas exchange measures and heart rate (HR) were collected throughout. RPE P and RPE C on the Category Ratio-10 were verbally recorded each minute. Blood lactate concentration ([BLa]) was determined post-test., Results: Between 50-100% peak oxygen uptake (V̇O 2peak ), RPE P was greater than RPE C in AB (p<0.05), but not in athletes with (p=0.07) or without (p=0.16) CSCI. RPE P was greater in AB compared to players with CSCI (Effect sizes: 1.24-1.62), as were respiratory exchange ratio (1.02±0.10 vs 0.82±0.11, p<0.05) and [BLa] peak (7.98±2.53 vs 4.66±1.57mmol·L -1 ). RPE C was greater in athletes without CSCI compared to those with CSCI (Effect sizes: 0.70-1.38), as were HR (166±20 vs 104±15 beats·min -1 , p<0.05) and ventilation (59.2±28.8 vs 35.1±16.6L·min -1 , p=0.01)., Conclusions: RPE P was dominant over RPE C during wheelchair propulsion for untrained AB participants. For athletes with CSCI, lower RPE P and RPE C were reported at the same %V̇O 2peak compared to those without CSCI. The mechanism for this remains to be fully elucidated., (Copyright © 2019 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)