BALL SIZE AND PERFORMANCE

Authors

  • Blaine N. Skleryk
  • E. Wendy Bedingfield

Abstract

Basketball is one sport where equipment design research has been almost nonexistent. With the exception of a height-adjustable basket and a junior-sized ball for elementary players, the size and weight of the first official basketball has remained the same for college men and women since its initial production in 1941 (Pitts, 1985). It has been suggested that skill Performance by women may be limited in those sports which do not have modified equipment designed specifically for their use (Eason, 1962; Pitts, 1985). The literature attributes differences in height, weight, hand size, and upper body strength between males and females to be responsible for a "handicapped" performance by women (as compared to men) when using equipment originally designed for men (Easson 1978, Husak 1984, Daily & ijarris 1984, Critelli 1984, and pitts 1985).

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Published

2008-04-12

Issue

Section

Equipment / Instrumentation