Anthropometric Characteristics of Chinese Professional Female Marathoners and Predicted Variables for their Personal Bests

Abstract

To investigate anthropometric characteristic of Chinese professional female marathoners and suitable predicted variables correlated with their personal bests(PBs). During the process of talent identification for London Olympic game, 96 Chinese female long-distance runners were divided into international(<2 h 34 min), national(2 h 34min~2 h 45min) and average(2 h 45 min~3 h 19 min) levels according to their PBs in marathon. Selected anthropometric variables, including height, body mass, %body fat, girths, breadths, lengths and skin-fold thicknesses were measured. Only iliac crest skin-fold of international athletes were significantly lower than its in national group. Girth of forearm and lower limbs, length of lower limbs, and all skin-fold thicknesses of national athletes were significantly lower than those from average level group. % body fat, girth of forearm and calf, length of lower limbs, and skin-folds at sites of subscapular, abdominal and iliac crest of athletes from average level group were significantly higher than those in international athletes. Positive correlation was found between forearm girth and PBs, and between the subscapular, abdominal, iliac crest and triceps surae skin-folds and PB for total athletes. Negative correlation between biiliac breadth and PB in international athletes, and positive correlations between abdominal and triceps surae skin-folds and PBs in national athletes were found. For average runners, high positive correlation was found between upper arm girth and PBs, and between subscapular, abdominal, iliac crest and triceps surae skin-folds and PBs. The findings suggested that compared to stride length, stride frequency and efficiency were more important factors influencing running performance, which were in accordance with running technique in Chinese female marathoners.