Physiological characteristics of elite short- and long-distance triathletes

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the physiological responses in cycling and running of elite short-distance (ShD) and long-distance (LD) triathletes. Fifteen elite male triathletes participating in the World Championships were divided into two groups (ShD and LD) and performed a laboratory trial that comprised submaximal treadmill running, maximal then submaximal ergometry cycling and then an additional submaximal run. "In situ" best ShD triathlon performances were also analysed for each athlete. ShD demonstrated a significantly faster swim time than LD whereas .VO(2max) (ml kg(-1) min(-1)), cycling economy (W l(-1) min(-1)), peak power output (.W(peak),W) and ventilatory threshold (%.VO(2max)) were all similar between ShD and LD. Moreover, there were no differences between the two groups in the change (%) in running economy from the first to the second running bout. Swimming time was correlated to .W(peak)(r=-0.76; P<0.05) and economy ( r=-0.89; P<0.01) in the ShD athletes. Also, cycling time in the triathlon was correlated to .W(peak)(r=-0.83; P<0.05) in LD. In conclusion, ShD triathletes had a faster swimming time but did not exhibit different maximal or submaximal physiological characteristics measured in cycling and running than LD triathletes.

Trends in Triathlon Performance: Effects of Sex and Age

“…[8,9] Triathlon performance has been studied from numerous perspectives by a number of research groups over approximately the same period that the sport has grown. Research has investigated physiological [1,10,11,12,13,14] , biomechanical [15,16,17] , training [16,18,19,20] , nutritional [21] or medical [22] aspects of triathlon performance. Although Ironman triathlon is a relatively new ultra-endurance event, recently elite Ironman triathletes appear to have reached their performance limits [2,23] as has been observed in more traditional sports such as marathon running where performance times have plateaued.…”

Talent selection criteria for olympic distance triathlon

“…Several studies tried to indagate the performance and the physiological characteristic in triathlon (Vleck et al, 2008;Millet et al, 2000Millet et al, , 2003Millet et al, , 2005Millet et al, and 2009). Because of the unknown aspects of the performance model in Olympic triathlon the Talent Selection variables and their relationship with future performance are far-off from being identified in a prospective study.…”

Physiological requirements in triathlon

“…. So, similarly to females, with the exception of Tadese, running economy in male distance runners does not appear to be better than the ones reported in elite triathletes: 174± 9 and 164 ± 8 ml·kg -1 ·km -1 for OD and LD triathletes, respectively (Millet, Dreano, Bentley, 2003). However further investigation with Elite LD triathletes is required to confirm these results.…”

“…The effect of a fatiguing cycling bout on the subsequent running energy cost was different between elite (-3.7 ± 4.8%, when compared to an isolated run) and middle-level (2.3 ± 4.6%) triathletes (Millet, Millet, Hofmann, Candau, 2000). Elite LD triathletes had slightly (but not significantly) lower EC than OD triathletes (163.8 vs. 172.9 and 163.0 vs. 177.4 ml·kg -1 ·km -1 during an isolated and a 'triathlon' run, respectively) (Millet, Dreano, Bentley, 2003). Surprisingly, no difference has been observed in EC between elite junior and senior triathletes, whether male or female, during an isolated run and a 'triathlon' run (173-185 ml·kg -1 ·km -1 ) (Millet & Bentley, 2004).…”