Affiliations: [a] Faculty of Physical Education and Sports, Lusófona
University, Lisbon, Portugal | [b] ICPOL, Higher Institute of Police Sciences and
Internal Security, Lisbon, Portugal | [c] Faculty of Sport Science, Castilla La Mancha
University, Toledo, Spain | [d] Valencia University, Valencia, Spain
Abstract: The majority of explosive actions during the Judo fight occur when
the athlete is trying to overcome his/her adversary via rapid execution(s) of
(isolated or chained) technical manoeuvres. The aim of this study was to
compare the results of two plyometric muscular action tests (i.e., Squat Jump
– SJ, and Countermovement Jump – CMJ) between judo- and non-judo- athletes. The investigation involved a cross-sectional examination of 102 subjects (age,
21.9 ± 3.4 years) divided into 3 performance groups: a)
Senior top elite judo athletes (n=50), b) Junior elite judo
athletes (n=26) and c) Adult non-judo athletes
(n=26). Thirteen biomechanical variables (including jump
height, velocity, power, force in SJ and CMJ; time to peak force, to peak power
and between peaks) were examined. The dataset was analysed using a Univariate
analysis of variance. No significant differences in anthropometric variables
were observed between groups. However, significant differences were observed
in: a) jump height and peak velocity (SJ, CMJ), b) peak power and peak force
(SJ), and c) peak eccentric force, peak eccentric power and peak concentric
power (CMJ). We conclude that: a) the center of mass displacement achieved in
the CMJ is higher than in the SJ; b) the optimisation of coordination between
the eccentric and concentric phases of muscle action is not the primary
determinant of performance of Judo athletes; and c) the main pre-requisite for
success in elite judo athletes is superior peak eccentric power.
