Relationship between physical condition races and pre-participation self-assessment for triathlons and aquathlons.

A pre-participation self-administered questionnaire of physical conditions was conducted for all participants in seven triathlon competitions and two aquathlon competitions in the Kinki area, Japan in 2004. Participants (1,181 men and 349 women) were obligated to submit the questionnaire before the start of each event. After all events, the questionnaire about pre-participation self-assessment was conducted for all participants. Response rates of the surveys were 12% (180 participants). Twenty-six participants had positive items (posi-tive group), and 154 participants had all negative items (negative group). The average age and physical condition in the positive group were significantly older and poorer than those in the negative group. Seven people (27%) had headache during and after the races in the positive group, and 13 people (8%) in the negative group. The former showed significantly high frequency. These results indicated the usefulness of the pre-participation self-administered questionnaire as the self management of physical conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]