The Effects Of Competition Level And Speed On Kinematics In Race Walkers

PURPOSE: Race walking is a technical endurance sport requiring athletes to balance speed with strict rules, such as continuous ground contact and a straight supporting knee. Key factors like step length and cadence influence race walking speed, with variations impacting both performance and disqualification risk. This study analyzes the kinematic characteristics of 20-km race walkers at different competition levels, focusing on spatiotemporal gait and joint angle variations across speeds. METHODS: Eighteen race walkers were recruited (international elite athletes = 9, national athletes = 9). Slow (10 km/h) and fast (Speed corresponding to PB) race walking speed tested. A motion capture system was used to record the movement trajectory of race walkers, and mixed model two-way repeated ANOVA statistically analyzed the spatiotemporal gait indicators and joint angles. RESULTS: Significant main effects were observed for stride length (slow: elite 1.08 ± 0.05 m, nation 1.10 ± 0.04 m; fast: elite 1.19 ± 0.07 m, nation 1.23 ± 0.06 m, p = 0.001), stride frequency (slow: elite 3.22 ± 0.12 Hz, nation 3.09 ± 0.10 Hz; fast: elite 3.91 ± 0.13 Hz, nation 3.74 ± 0.15 Hz, p = 0.012), step time (slow: elite 31.09 ± 1.06 ms, nation 31.44 ± 1.21 ms; fast: elite 29.25 ± 0.97 ms, nation 28.19 ± 0.18 ms, p = 0.003), flight time (slow: elite 2.27 ± 1.21 ms, nation 4 ± 0.87 ms, p = 0.001), and support time (slow: elite 294 ± 13.3 ms, nation 248.6 ± 12.4 ms; fast: elite 302.3 ± 21.2 ms, nation 241.5 ± 7.4 ms, p < 0.001). These results indicate that the international elite race walkers had different values for these gait parameters compared to the national-level athletes, with the elite athletes showing less variability in these parameters across different speeds. Additionally, a significant main effect was found for the thigh separation angle at heel contact (slow: elite 53.88 ± 4.05°, nation 55.36 ± 3.91°; fast: elite 59.03 ± 6.95°, nation 59.44 ± 4.91°, p = 0.006), while no significant differences were detected in knee and ankle joint angles. CONCLUSIONS: (1) The spatial and temporal gait indexes of the international elite athletes have little difference in different speed race walking; (2) International elite athletes exhibit greater consistency in their technical movements compared to national level athletes.