Investigation of the Relationship Between Anaerobic Performance and Agility in Elite Ski Mountaineers

This study examined the relationship between anaerobic performance and agility in elite ski mountaineers. Cross-sectional survey model was used in the study. 14 male ski-mountaineering athletes who competed in the final stage of Ski-mountaineering Turkey Cup" individual race category participated voluntarily. The anaerobic performance of the athletes was evaluated using parameters such as peak power, average power, and fatigue index were assessed via the Wingate test, while agility was measured by Hexagon test. After the data were subjected to descriptive statistics, normality, linearity and homoscedasticity preliminary analyses were performed and the data were analyzed by Pearson correlation and simple regression test. As a result of the study, it was found that there were strong negative relationships between peak power and average power values normalized by body weight and agility times. In contrast, statistically insignificant relationships were found between minimum power and time to peak power and agility. In addition, relative peak power explained 33.9% of the agility variance and relative average power explained 31.1%. This study emphasized that maximal anaerobic power and power output normalized to body weight play a critical role for the success of technical movements in elite alpine skiers. However, the fact that approximately 65-70% of agility is affected by neuromuscular coordination, balance and technical skills indicates that training programs should be multifaceted. Accordingly, explosive strength training, lactic tolerance training and discipline-specific simulations are recommended. The results of the study provide an important contribution to the literature by clarifying the role of anaerobic capacity in ski-mountaineering performance optimization.