Connection between balance and lower extremities functional indicators and track and field adolescent athletes selected event

Miglė Bielskytė. Connection between balance and lower extremities functional indicators and track and field adolescent athletes selected event. Master ‘s thesis. Supervisor – M.D. Renata Žumbakytė – Šermukšnienė. Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Medical Academy, Faculty of Nursing, Sports Medicine Clinic. Kaunas, 2019; 60 p. The aim: To evaluate adolescents track and field athletes balance and lower extremities functional indicators and their connection with selected event. Tasks: 1. To evaluate adolescent track and field athletes balance indicators. 2. To evaluate adolescent track and field athletes’ lower extremities functional indicators. 3. To evaluate adolescent track and field athletes balance and selected event connection. 4. To evaluate adolescent track and field athletes’ lower extremities functional indicators and selected event connection. Methodology and participants: In study participated 30 adolescent Kaunas sport school “Startas” athletes, aged 14-15 years boys and girls running short and long distances and jumpers. Used tests: Y balance test - to evaluate dynamic stability; Calf muscle strength measurement with Lafayette dynamometer –foot plantar flexion and dorsal flexion muscles strength; Single Leg Hop Test (HOP) –to evaluate dynamic knee and ankle stability, lower extremities neuromuscular coordination and muscle strength; T- test is used to evaluate lower extremities agility. Conclusions: 1.Short-distance adolescent runners had better dynamic balance than long-distance runners. 2.Short- and long-distance adolescent runners had larger left foot dorsiflexion strength compared to right leg, long jumpers had larger right foot dorsiflexion strength than long-distance runners. Adolescents, short-distance runners and long jumpers had better explosive leg strength than long-distance runners. Adolescents long jumpers had better right leg knee and ankle dynamic stability compared to left leg also better than long-distance runners. Short-distance runners and long jumpers’ adolescents had better agility than long-distance runners. 3.There is medium strength correlation between dynamic balance in both legs and group. 4.There is direct dependency between track and field event and calf muscles strength, agility, also larger explosive strength means better jump and faster sprint. The study showed that the right leg's explosive strength and the dynamic stability of the knee and ankle joints would vary with track and field events