THE INFLUENCE OF PRECEDING MOVEMENTS IN THE PERFORMANCE OF BALLET JUMPS

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to gain more insights about the individual technique used in the performance of ballet jumps and determine the influence of preceding movements in the efficiency of its performance. Seven female ballet students participate voluntarily in the study. Ground reaction forces were measured using a Bertec force plate. A triaxial accelerometer was placed at the low back of the subject on the skin surface, approximately at the height of the centre of mass. Results suggest that generally, a positive influence from preceding movements was observed in the performance of the selected jumps. Jumps preceded by only one movement, show a tendency to an increase in the reached height. Due to an immature technique of performance, our ballet students did not use appropriately preceding movements to potentiate the subsequent jumps.