Abstract Purpose: This study aimed to assess the prevalence of low bone mineral density (BMD) in male and female elite cyclists at different stages of a professional cycling career and to identify potential risk factors of low BMD. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 93 male and female early career, advanced career, and postcareer elite cyclists completed dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry at the hip, femoral neck, lumbar spine, and total body; blood sampling; assessment of training history and injuries; and the bone-specific physical activity questionnaire. Backward stepwise multiple regression analyses were conducted to explore associations between BMD and its potential predictors in early and advanced career (i.e., active career) cyclists. Results: With a mean Z -score of -0.3 ± 0.8, -1.5 ± 1.0, and -1.0 ± 0.9, low BMD ( Z -score < -1) at the lumbar spine was present in 27%, 64%, and 50% of the early, advanced, and postcareer elite male cyclists, respectively. Lumbar spine Z -scores of -0.9 ± 1.0, -1.0 ± 1.0, and 0.2 ± 1.4 in early, advanced, and postcareer elite female cyclists, respectively, indicated low BMD in 45%, 45%, and 20% of these female subpopulations. Regression analyses identified body mass index, fracture incidence, bone-specific physical activity, and triiodothyronine as the main factors associated with BMD. Conclusions: Low BMD is highly prevalent in elite cyclists, especially in early career females and advanced career males and females. These low BMD values may not fully recover after the professional cycling career, given the substantial prevalence of low BMD in retired elite cyclists. Exploratory analyses indicated that low BMD is associated with low body mass index, fracture incidence, lack of bone-specific physical activity, and low energy availability in active career elite cyclists.
Is eSport een echte sport of niet? Hoe je het fenomeen ook wil categoriseren, eSport is de nieuwste ster in de sportmediawereld. Voorlopig lijkt er nog lang geen einde te komen aan haar steile groeicurve. De vraag is volgens ons dan ook niet of eSport een plaats opeist bij de grote mediasporten, maar vooral op welke manier.
Introduction: There is a lack of effective interventions available for Pediatric Physical Therapists (PPTs) to promote a physically active lifestyle in children with physical disabilities. Participatory design methods (co-design) may be helpful in generating insights and developing intervention prototypes for facilitating a physically active lifestyle in children with physical disabilities (6–12 years). Materials and methods: A multidisciplinary development team of designers, developers, and researchers engaged in a co-design process–together with parents, PPTs, and other relevant stakeholders (such as the Dutch Association of PPTs and care sports connectors). In this design process, the team developed prototypes for interventions during three co-creation sessions, four one-week design sprint, living-lab testing and two triangulation sessions. All available co-design data was structured and analyzed by three researchers independently resulting in themes for facilitating physical activity. Results: The data rendered two specific outcomes, (1) knowledge cards containing the insights collected during the co-design process, and (2) eleven intervention prototypes. Based on the generated insights, the following factors seem important when facilitating a physically active lifestyle: a) stimulating self-efficacy; b) stimulating autonomy; c) focusing on possibilities; d) focusing on the needs of the individual child; e) collaborating with stakeholders; f) connecting with a child's environment; and g) meaningful goal setting. Conclusion: This study shows how a co-design process can be successfully applied to generate insights and develop interventions in pediatric rehabilitation. The designed prototypes facilitate the incorporation of behavioral change techniques into pediatric rehabilitation and offer new opportunities to facilitate a physically active lifestyle in children with physical disabilities by PPTs. While promising, further studies should examine the feasibility and effectivity of these prototypes.
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Electronic Sports (esports) is a form of digital entertainment, referred to as "an organised and competitive approach to playing computer games". Its popularity is growing rapidly as a result of an increased prevalence of online gaming, accessibility to technology and access to elite competition.Esports teams are always looking to improve their performance, but with fast-paced interaction, it can be difficult to establish where and how performance can be improved. While qualitative methods are commonly employed and effective, their widespread use provides little differentiation among competitors and struggles with pinpointing specific issues during fast interactions. This is where recent developments in both wearable sensor technology and machine learning can offer a solution. They enable a deep dive into player reactions and strategies, offering insights that surpass traditional qualitative coaching techniquesBy combining insights from gameplay data, team communication data, physiological measurements, and visual tracking, this project aims to develop comprehensive tools that coaches and players can use to gain insight into the performance of individual players and teams, thereby aiming to improve competitive outcomes. Societal IssueAt a societal level, the project aims to revolutionize esports coaching and performance analysis, providing teams with a multi-faceted view of their gameplay. The success of this project could lead to widespread adoption of similar technologies in other competitive fields. At a scientific level, the project could be the starting point for establishing and maintaining further collaboration within the Dutch esports research domain. It will enhance the contribution from Dutch universities to esports research and foster discussions on optimizing coaching and performance analytics. In addition, the study into capturing and analysing gameplay and player data can help deepen our understanding into the intricacies and complexities of teamwork and team performance in high-paced situations/environments. Collaborating partnersTilburg University, Breda Guardians.
