Amateur boxing in the last 59 years. Impact of rules changes on the type of verdicts recorded and implications on boxers' health.

Background/aim: Several changes have occurred in Olympic boxing (OB) in the last few decades, influencing the results in official competitions. The aim of this study was to assess how the evolution of rules changed the rate of the results that can influence boxers' health.

Methods: From a web-research, the results of OB tournaments from 1952 to 2011 were reviewed (29,357 bouts).

Differences in lactate exchange and removal abilities between high-level African and Caucasian 400-m track runners.

The present study aimed to investigate (1) whether high-level 400-m track runners of different ethnic origin displayed divergent post-run blood lactate concentrations (p400m[La]) and (2) if this discrepancy was based on differences in lactate exchange and removal abilities. Twenty male African (n = 12) and Caucasian (n = 8) runners, paired in terms of personal record, performed (1) an all-out 400-m run to measure p400m[La] at 3, 5 and 7 min into recovery and (2) a 1-min 25.2 km h(-1) running (not maximal but standardized) exercise followed by 90-min passive recovery to determine individual blood lactate recovery curves (IBLRC).

Physical fitness evaluation of paralympic winter sports sitting athletes.

Objective: To provide normative values of physical fitness in Paralympic winter sports athletes competing in a sitting posture and to identify the components relevant for successful performance.

Design: Cross-sectional study with sports.

Setting: The Institute of Sports Medicine and Science of the Italian National Olympic Committee (Rome, Italy).

Criterion and longitudinal validity of a fixed-distance incremental running test for the determination of lactate thresholds in field settings.

The aim of this study was to examine the criterion validity of 2 lactate thresholds (LTs, intensity corresponding to 1 mmol·L(-1) above baseline; onset of blood lactate accumulation, intensity at 4 mmol·L(-1)) determined with a fixed-distance incremental field test by assessing their correlation with those obtained using a traditional fixed-time laboratory protocol. A second aim was to verify the longitudinal validity by examining the relationships between the changes in LTs obtained with the 2 protocols. To determine the LTs, 12 well-trained male middle and long distance amateur and competitive runners training from 4 to 7 d·wk(-1) (age 25 [5] years, body mass 66 [5] kg, estimated VO(2)max 58.

The effects of whole-body vibration in isolation or combined with strength training in female athletes.

The aims of this study were to assess the behavior of a vibrating platform under different conditions and to compare the effects of an 8-week periodized training program with whole-body vibration (WBV) alone or in combination with conventional strength training (ST). Vibrating frequencies, displacements, and peak accelerations were tested through a piezoelectric accelerometer under different conditions of load and subjects' position. Eighteen national-level female athletes were assigned to 1 of 3 different groups performing WBV, conventional ST, or a combination of the 2 (WBV + ST).

Comparison of baseline neuropsychological testing in amateur versus professional boxers.

Unlabelled: The aim of the study is to investigate cognitive functions in boxers. The study population was composed of 2 groups of male boxers with no history of head concussions (except during boxing): a) 33 amateurs at their first examination; b) 27 professionals. Subjects were requested to: a) fulfill a questionnaire collecting demographic data, level of education, occupational status, boxing record (for professionals), and number of head concussions during boxing; b) undergo a computerized neuropsychological (NP) test (CogSport) measuring simple and complex reaction time (RT).