JOINT WORK OF THE TAKE-OFF LEG DURING ELITE HIGH JUMP

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to evaluate kinematics and kinetics in elite high jumpers and to estimate joint work of the lower extremity with a custom-modified full-body model. Motions of seven male athletes (personal best 2.24 ± 0.06 m) during jumping were filmed with 19 Infrared-Highspeed-Cameras and ground reaction forces were captured with a force plate. The results show that knee joint energy absorption is twice as much as at the ankle joint (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in energy generation between the knee and ankle joint, but the ankle joint generates more energy than it absorbs (p < 0.05). The problem-solving approach to raise the center of mass to 2.10 m was different between the jumpers.