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Background:  Standard performance parameters measured during a laboratory test have been shown to be related to mountain ultra-marathon performance up to a competition length of 75 km. It is not known if a similar relationship exists for longer races., Objective:  This study aimed to investigate the association between laboratory-based performance parameters and performance times in a short (68 km) and a long (121 km) mountain ultra-marathon., Materials and Methods:  Eleven male finishers of the short race and seven male finishers of the long race were investigated. Participants performed an incremental exercise test to exhaustion in the 2 weeks prior to the event. During the event, the heart rate was monitored and finishing times were registered., Results:  The maximal oxygen consumption and the oxygen uptake at the ventilatory thresholds 1 and 2 were related to performance time during the short run (~12h; r = -0.764 up to r = -0.782; p < 0.05), but there was no correlation during the long race (~28h; r = -0.107 to 0.357; p > 0.05)., Conclusions:  This study shows that physical fitness parameters established in a laboratory setting determine competition completion times in ultra-mountain marathon events lasting for ~12 h. During longer races, i. e. ~28 h, other factors not established in the present investigation, such as experience, race strategy, coping with pain and fatigue resistance, may be important for performance., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.)

Castagna, C, Bizzini, M, Araújo Póvoas, SC, Schenk, K, Büsser, G, and D'Ottavio, S. Aerobic fitness in top-class soccer referees. J Strength Cond Res 33(11): 3098-3104, 2019-The aim of this study was to examine the aerobic fitness status of top-class male soccer officials using a cross-sectional design and known population group constructs. Fifty-two field referees (FRs, age 38.4 ± 3.3 years; height 181 ± 5.6 cm; body mass 76.8 ± 6.8 kg; body mass index [BMI] 23.4 ± 1.7 kg·m; body fat 20.4 ± 3.6%; and international refereeing experience 5 ± 3.5 years) and 104 assistant referees (ARs, age 37.8 ± 4.1 years; height 176.9 ± 7.5 cm; body mass 72.1 ± 7.4 kg; BMI 23 ± 1.6 kg·m; body fat 19.2 ± 3.6%; and international refereeing experience 7 ± 3.8 years) from 53 National Football Associations worldwide, and candidates of the preliminary open-list developed by the FIFA Refereeing Department for the 2014 World Cup Final Tournament, were tested for aerobic fitness in laboratory conditions with a progressive speed treadmill test to exhaustion. Large (+8.54%, d = 0.8) and small (+3.1%, d = 0.3) differences in absolute (L·min) and relative (ml·kg·min) VO2max were found between FR and AR, respectively. Trivial differences (d = 0.07) were shown in running economy (RE) (6 minutes at 8 km·h) between AR and FR. Using the scaling notation (b = 0.64), medium and significant differences were found between match officials for VO2max and RE (FR > AR; d = 0.6 and 0.67, respectively). Using receiver operating characteristic curve statistics, cutoff values of 3.93 L·min and 50.6 ml·kg·min were detected in absolute and relative VO2max for the FR and the AR (FR > AR), respectively. The FR showed superior aerobic fitness compared with AR. Training prescription should consider intensities at anaerobic threshold speed (14 km·h, 91% heart rate max) when aerobic fitness development is the aim in elite officials.

Referees are an integral part of soccer, and their performance is fundamental for regular match flow, irrespective of the competition level or age classes. So far, scientific interest was mainly limited to aspects of exercise physiology and match performance of soccer referees, whereas recommendations for nutrition were adopted from active professional soccer. In contrast to elite soccer players, most referees are non-professional and engaged in different occupations. Furthermore, elite referees and soccer players differ in regard to age, body composition, aerobic capacity, and training load. Thus, referees' caloric needs and recommended daily carbohydrate intake may generally be lower compared to active soccer players, with higher intakes limited to periods of increased training load and match days or for referees engaged in physical demanding occupations. With respect to fluid intake, pre-match and in-match hydration strategies generally valid in sports are recommended also for referees to avoid cognitive and physical performance loss, especially when officiating in extreme climates and altitude. In contrast to elite soccer, professional assistance concerning nutrition and training is rarely available for national elite referees of most countries. Therefore, special attention on education about adequate nutrition and fluid intake, about the dietary prevention of deficiencies (iron in female referees, vitamin D irrespective of sex and age), and basic precautions for travels abroad is warranted. In conclusion, the simple adoption of nutritional considerations from active soccer for referees may not be appropriate. Recommendations should respect gender differences, population-specific physical characteristics, and demands just as well as individual characteristics and special needs., (© 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The aims of this study were to quantify the cardiorespiratory fitness level of amateur mountain runners and to characterize the related cardiorespiratory and muscular strain during a multistage competition. Therefore, 16 male amateur participants performed an incremental treadmill test before the Transalpine-Run 2010. Besides race time, heart rate (HR) was monitored using portable HR monitors during all stages, and countermovement jump ability was assessed after each stage. Overall race time and race times of the single stages were not related to any of the cardiorespiratory fitness parameters assessed during the incremental treadmill test (e.g., V[Combining Dot Above]O2max, ventilatory threshold). Average HR during the first stage was 81 ± 7% of the maximal HR and decreased to 73 ± 6% during the following stages. Creatine kinase activity as an indirect marker of muscle damage and strain amounted to 1,100 ± 619 U·L-1 after the third stage and was related to the decrease in the mean HR between stage 1 and stage 2 (r = -0.616, p < 0.05). Jump ability decreased continuously in the course of the race but was not related to exercise intensity. In conclusion, this study showed that race performance during a multistage mountain marathon does not depend on cardiorespiratory fitness parameters determined in the laboratory. Furthermore, the mean HR decreased after the first stage and remained constant during the following stages independent of the decreased muscle strength. We interpret these data to mean that performance differences were a result of insufficient recovery after the first day of multistage mountain running and the different individual pacing strategies. It is worth mentioning that also other factors, not determined in this investigation, could be responsible for the present outcomes (e.g., nutrition, genetics, psychological and environmental factors, or different training programs).

We investigated the effects of two 5-wk periods of intermittent hypoxia on running economy (RE). 11 male and female middle-distance runners were randomly assigned to the intermittent hypoxia group (IHG) or to the control group (CG). All athletes trained for a 13-wk period starting at pre-season until the competition season. The IHG spent additionally 2 h at rest on 3 days/wk for the first and the last 5 weeks in normobaric hypoxia (15-11% FiO2). RE, haematological parameters and body composition were determined at low altitude (600 m) at baseline, after the 5 (th), the 8 (th) and the 13 (th) week of training. RE, determined by the relative oxygen consumption during submaximal running, (-2.3+/-1.2 vs. -0.3+/-0.7 ml/min/kg, P<0.05) and total running time (+1.0+/-0.9 vs. +0.4+/-0.5 min, P<0.05) changed significantly between the IHG and CG only during the first 5-wk period. Haematological and cardiorespiratory changes indicate that the improved RE was associated with decreased cardiorespiratory costs and greater reliance on carbohydrate. Intermittent hypoxia did not affect RE during the second 5-wk period. These findings suggest that the effects of intermittent hypoxia on RE strongly depend on the training phase., (Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart . New York.)