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Purpose: This study determined the evolution of performance and pacing for each winner of the men's Olympic 1500-m running track final from 1924 to 2020. Methods: Data were obtained from publicly available sources. When official splits were unavailable, times from sources such as YouTube were included and interpolated from video records. Final times, lap splits, and position in the peloton were included. The data are presented relative to 0 to 400 m, 400 to 800 m, 800 to 1200 m, and 1200 to 1500 m. Critical speed and D′ were calculated using athletes' season's best times. Results: Performance improved ∼25 seconds from 1924 to 2020, with most improvement (∼19 s) occurring in the first 10 finals. However, only 2 performances were world records, and only one runner won the event twice. Pacing evolved from a fast start–slow middle–fast finish pattern (reverse J-shaped) to a slower start with steady acceleration in the second half (J-shaped). The coefficient of variation for lap speeds ranged from 1.4% to 15.3%, consistent with a highly tactical pacing pattern. With few exceptions, the eventual winners were near the front throughout, although rarely in the leading position. There is evidence of a general increase in both critical speed and D′ that parallels performance. Conclusions: An evolution in the pacing pattern occurred across several "eras" in the history of Olympic 1500-m racing, consistent with better trained athletes and improved technology. There has been a consistent tactical approach of following opponents until the latter stages, and athletes should develop tactical flexibility, related to their critical speed and D′, in planning prerace strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Scientific interest in pacing goes back >100 years. Contemporary interest, both as a feature of athletic competition and as a window into understanding fatigue, goes back >30 years. Pacing represents the pattern of energy use designed to produce a competitive result while managing fatigue of different origins. Pacing has been studied both against the clock and during head-to-head competition. Several models have been used to explain pacing, including the teleoanticipation model, the central governor model, the anticipatory-feedback-rating of perceived exertion model, the concept of a learned template, the affordance concept, the integrative governor theory, and as an explanation for "falling behind." Early studies, mostly using time-trial exercise, focused on the need to manage homeostatic disturbance. More recent studies, based on head-to-head competition, have focused on an improved understanding of how psychophysiology, beyond the gestalt concept of rating of perceived exertion, can be understood as a mediator of pacing and as an explanation for falling behind. More recent approaches to pacing have focused on the elements of decision making during sport and have expanded the role of psychophysiological responses including sensory-discriminatory, affective-motivational, and cognitive-evaluative dimensions. These approaches have expanded the understanding of variations in pacing, particularly during head-to-head competition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: To compare anabolic signaling responses to differing sequences of concurrent strength and endurance training in a fed state. Methods: Eighteen resistance-trained men were randomly assigned to the following experimental conditions: strength training (ST), strength followed by endurance training (ST-END), or endurance followed by strength training (END-ST). Muscle tissue samples were taken from the vastus lateralis before each exercise protocol, on cessation of exercise, and l h after cessation of strength training. Tissue was analyzed for total and phosphorylated (p-) signaling proteins linked to the mTOR and AMPK networks. Results: Strength-training performance was similar between ST, ST-END, and END-ST. p-S6kl was elevated from baseline 1 h posttraining in ST and ST-END (both P < .05). p-4E-BPl was significantly lower than baseline post-ST (P = .01), whereas at 1 h postexercise in the ST-END condition p-4E-BPl was significantly greater than postexercise (P = .04). p-ACC was elevated from baseline both postexercise and 1 h postexercise (both P < .05) in the END-ST condition. AMPK, mTOR, p38, PKB, and eEF2 responded similarly to ST, ST-END, and END-ST. Signaling responses to ST, ST-END, and END were largely similar. As such it cannot be ascertained which sequence of concurrent strength and endurance training is most favorable in promoting anabolic signaling. Conclusions: In the case of the current study an acute bout of concurrent training of differing sequences elicited similar responses of the AMPK and mTOR networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Context: Ankle immobilization is often used after ankle injury. Objective: To determine the influence of 1 week's unilateral ankle immobilization on plantar-flexor strength, balance, and walking gait in asymptomatic volunteers. Design: Repeated-measures laboratory study. Setting: University laboratory. Participants: 6 physically active male participants with no recent history of lower-limb injury. Interventions: Participants completed a 1-wk period of ankle immobilization achieved through wearing a below-knee ankle cast. Before the cast was applied, as well as immediately, 24 h, and 48 h after cast removal, their plantar-flexor strength was assessed isokinetically, and they completed a single-leg balance task as a measure of proprioceptive function. An analysis of their walking gait was also completed Main Outcome Measures: Peak plantar-flexor torque and balance were used to determine any effect on muscle strength and proprioception after cast removal. Ranges of motion (3D) of the ankle, knee, and hip, as well as walking speed, were used to assess any influence on walking gait. Results: After cast removal, plantar-flexor strength was reduced for the majority of participants (P = .063, CI = -33.98 to 1.31) and balance performance was reduced in the immobilized limb (P < .05, CI = 0.84-5.16). Both strength and balance were not significantly different from baseline levels by 48 h. Walking speed was not significantly different immediately after cast removal but increased progressively above baseline walking speed over the following 48 h. Joint ranges of motion were not significantly different at any time point. Conclusions: The reduction in strength and balance after such a short period of immobilization suggested compromised central and peripheral neural mechanisms. This suggestion appeared consistent with the delayed increase in walking speed that could occur as a result of the excitability of the neural pathways increasing toward baseline levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: Previous literature has presented pacing data of groups of competition finalists. The aim of this study was to analyze the pacing patterns displayed by medalists and nonmedalists in international competitive 400-m swimming and 1500-m running finals. Methods: Split times were collected from 48 swimming finalists (four 100-m laps) and 60 running finalists (4 laps) in international competitions from 2004 to 2012. Using a cross-sectional design, lap speeds were normalized to whole-race speed and compared to identify variations of pace between groups of medalists and nonmedalists. Lap-speed variations relative to the gold medalist were compared for the whole field. Results: In 400-m swimming the medalist group demonstrated greater variation in speed than the nonmedalist group, being relatively faster in the final lap (P < .001; moderate effect) and slower in laps 1 (P = .03; moderate effect) and 2 (P > .001; moderate effect). There were also greater variations of pace in the 1500-m running medalist group than in the nonmedalist group, with a relatively faster final lap (P = .03; moderate effect) and slower second lap (P = .01; small effect). Swimming gold medalists were relatively faster than all other finalists in lap 4 (P = .04), and running gold medalists were relatively faster than the 5th- to 12th-placed athletes in the final lap (P = .02). Conclusions: Athletes who win medals in 1500-m running and 400-m swimming competitions show different pacing patterns than nonmedalists. End-spurt-speed increases are greater with medalists, who demonstrate a slower relative speed in the early part of races but a faster speed during the final part of races than nonmedalists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: To assess the reliability and stability of 400-m swimming and 1500-m running competitions to establish the number of samples needed to obtain a stable pacing profile. Coaches, athletes, and researchers can use these methods to ensure that sufficient data are collected before training and race strategies are constructed or research conclusions are drawn. Method: Lap times were collected from 5 world and European championship finals between 2005 and 2011, resulting in the capture of data from 40 swimmers and 55 runners. A cumulative mean for each lap was calculated, starting with the most recent data, and the number of races needed for this to stabilize to within 1% was reported. Typical error for each lap was calculated for athletes who had competed in more than 1 final. Results: International swimmers demonstrated more reproducible performances than runners in 3 of the 4 laps of the race (P < .01). Variance in runners’ lap times significantly decreased by 1.7-2.7% after lap 1, whereas variance in swimmers’ lap times tended to increase by 0.1-0.5% after lap 1. To establish a stable profile, at least ten 400-m swimmers and forty-four 1500-m runners must be included. Conclusions: A stable race profile was observed from the analysis of 5 events for 1500-m running and 3 events for 400-m swimming. Researchers and athletes can be more certain about the pacing information collected from 400-m swimming than 1500-m running races, as the swimming data are less variable, despite both events being of similar duration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: To analyze pacing strategies displayed by athletes achieving differing levels of performance during an elite-level marathon race. Methods: Competitors in the 2009IAAF Women's Marathon Championship were split into groups 1, 2,3, and 4 comprising the first, second, third, and fourth 25% of finishers, respectively. Final, intermediate, and personal-best (PB) times of finishers were converted to mean speeds, and relative speed (% of PB speed) was calculated for intermediate segments. Results: Mean PB speed decreased from groups 1 to 4, and speeds maintained in the race were 98.5% ± 1.8%, 97.4% ± 3.2%, 95.0% ± 3.1 %, and 92.4% ± 4.4% of PB speed for groups 1-4 respectively. Group 1 was fastest in all segments, and differences in speed between groups increased throughout the race. Group 1 ran at lower relative speeds than other groups for the first two 5-km segments but higher relative speeds after 35 km. Significant differences (P < .01) in the percentage of PB speed maintained were observed between groups I and 4 and groups 2 and 4 in all segments after 20 km and groups 3 and 4 from 20 to 25 km and 30 to 35 km. Conclusions: Group 1 athletes achieved better finishing times relative to their PB than athletes in other groups, who selected unsustainable initial speeds resulting in subsequent significant losses of speed. It is suggested that psychological factors specific to a major competitive event influenced decision making by athletes, and poor decisions resulted in final performances inferior to those expected based on PB times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: Given the paucity of research on pacing strategies during competitive events, this study examined changes in dynamic high-resolution performance parameters to analyze pacing profiles during a multiple-lap mountain-bike race over variable terrain. Methods: A global-positioning-system (GPS) unit (Garmin, Edge 305, USA) recorded velocity (m/s), distance (m), elevation (m), and heart rate at 1 Hz from 6 mountain-bike riders (mean ± SD age = 27.2 ± 5.0 y, stature = 176.8 ± 8.1 cm, mass = 76.3 ± 11.7 kg, VO2max = 55.1 ± 6.0 mL - kg-1 - min-1) competing in a multilap race. Lap-by-lap (interlap) pacing was analyzed using a 1-way ANOVA for mean time and mean velocity. Velocity data were averaged every 100 m and plotted against race distance and elevation to observe the presence of intralap variation. Results: There was no significant difference in lap times (P = .99) or lap velocity {P - .65) across the 5 laps. Within each lap, a high degree of oscillation in velocity was observed, which broadly reflected changes in terrain, but high-resolution data demonstrated additional nonmonotonic variation not related to terrain. Conclusion: Participants adopted an even pace strategy across the 5 laps despite rapid adjustments in velocity during each lap. While topographical and technical variations of the course accounted for some of the variability in velocity, the additional rapid adjustments in velocity may be associated with dynamic regulation of self-paced exercise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: To identify tactical factors associated with progression from preliminary rounds in middle-distance running events at an international championship. Methods: Results from the 2012 Olympic Games were used to access final and intermediate positions, finishing times, and season-best (SB) times for competitors in men's and women's 800-m and 1500-m events (fifteen 800-m races and ten 1500-m races). Finishing times were calculated as %SB, and Pearson product-moment correlations were used to assess relationships between intermediate and finishing positions. Probability (P) of qualification to the next round was calculated for athletes in each available intermediate position. Results: There were no significant differences in finishing times relative to SB between qualifiers and nonqualifiers. In the 800-m, correlation coefficients between intermediate and final positions were r = .61 and r = .84 at 400 m and 600 m, respectively, whereas in the 1500-m, correlations were r = .35, r = .43, r = .55, and r = .71 at 400 m, 800 m, 1000 m, and 1200 m, respectively. In both events, probability of qualification decreased with position at all intermediate distances. At all points, those already in qualifying positions were more likely to qualify for the next round. Conclusions: The data demonstrate that tactical positioning at intermediate points in qualifying rounds of middle-distance races is a strong determinant of qualification. In 800-m races it is important to be in a qualifying position by 400 m. In the 1500-m event, although more changes in position are apparent, position at intermediate distances is still strongly related to successful qualification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Purpose: This study examined individual contributions to overall pacing strategy during 2- and 5-km rowing trials in a coxless-4 boat. Methods: A crew of 4 male rowers performed maximal-effort on-water trials over 2 and 5 km, and power output during every individual stroke was measured for each crew member. Mean overall boat and individual rower stroke power were calculated for each 25% epoch (25% of total strokes taken), and power for each individual epoch was calculated as a percentage of mean power maintained over the entire distance. The coefficient of variation was used to determine stroke-to-stroke and epoch-to-epoch variability for individual rowers and the overall boat. Results: In both trials, the overall pacing strategy consisted of a high power output in the initial 25% that decreased in the middle 50% and increased again in the final 25%. However, individual rower data indicate wide variation in individual power profiles that did not always mimic the overall boat profile. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that overall boat power profiles during 2- and 5-km rowing trials are similar to velocity profiles previously reported for individual ergometry and on-water racing events. However, this overall profile is achieved despite considerable variation in individual rower profiles. Further research is warranted to determine the mechanisms through which individual contributions to overall pacing strategy are regulated and the effectiveness or otherwise of seemingly disparate individual strategies on overall performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...