A172: Performance of Muscle Explosive and Maximal Strength in TrampolineAthletes at Different Levels of Competition

<bold>Purpose:</bold> To study the differences in lower limb muscle explosive and maximal strength among trampoline athletes at different levels of competition. <bold>Methods:</bold> A total of fifteen trampoline athletes, comprising seven elite and eight non-elite athletes, participated in this project. Lower limb explosive strength was assessed using the countermovement jump (CMJ) test. Maximal strength was evaluated by the MicroFet portable system. The maximal strength of the hip, knee, and ankle were measured and standardized by weight. Independent t-tests were employed to examine the differences between the two groups. Cohen's d was used to evaluate the related effect size. Small, medium, and large effect sizes are represented by 0.20 ≤ <italic>d</italic> &lt; 0.50, 0.50 ≤ <italic>d</italic> &lt; 0.80, and <italic>d</italic> ≥ 0.80, respectively. <bold>Results:</bold> Significant differences were observed in the CMJ performance between the two groups. The take-off velocity of elite athletes (2.91±0.17m/s) was higher than that of non-elite athletes (2.63±0.24 m/s, <italic>p</italic>=0.023, <italic>d</italic>=1.328). Additionally, the jump height increased from elite athletes (0.42±0.05m) to non-elite athletes (0.32±0.06m, <italic>p</italic>=0.009, <italic>d</italic>=1.591). Furthermore, elite athletes demonstrated higher average power output (32.79±3.49W/kg) compared to non-elite athletes (27.10±3.51W/kg, <italic>p</italic>=0.008, <italic>d</italic>=1.627). The reactive strength index in the non-elite athletes (0.75±0.12m/s) was lower than in the elite athletes (0.96±0.15m/s, <italic>p</italic>=0.011, <italic>d</italic>=1.530). However, no significant differences were observed in relative muscle strength of the lower limb (hip, knee, and ankle) between the two groups (<italic>p</italic> &gt; 0.05). <bold>Conclusion:</bold> For trampoline athletes, the explosive strength of the lower limbs appears to have a more pronounced effect on performance than maximal strength. Therefore, developing the explosive strength of the lower limbs may be crucial for enhancing the performance of trampoline athletes.