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Performance Analysis and Training Process in Sports: Bridging Science and Practice

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 October 2025 | Viewed by 5052

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Gavriil George Arsoniadis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Physical Education and Sports Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 17237 Athens, Greece
Interests: swimming; strength and conditioning; exercise physiology
Dr. Rodrigo Zacca

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Research Center in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure (CIAFEL), Faculty of Sports, University of Porto (FADEUP), 4099-002 Porto, Portugal
2. Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), 4050-600 Porto, Portugal
Interests: open water swimming; marathon swimming; swimming; exercise; health; sports training; training process; training periodization; training and detraining; exercise and sport physiology; energetics; bioenergetics; human locomotion; pulmonary function; oxygen uptake kinetics; biomarkers; thermal physiology; electrochemical biosensors; microneedle biosensors; strength and conditioning; exercise and sport biomechanics; digital technologies; wearable technologies; smart textiles; physical fitness assessment; elite athletes; training and testing; physical activity monitoring; performance analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

One of the most important areas within Sports Science in the last few years has been the optimization of sport performance. In addition, the type of training that athletes follow during different training periods throughout a year-round training plan, as well as the development of training with new equipment, practical methods with new training practices and the control of training by new technologies may help coaches and athletes to further optimize their performance.

This Special Issue aims to compile the latest training strategies or practices, the development of training with new equipment and technological applications in this area and to open a forum where people from academia and the sports industry can propose new training strategies for the following potential topics:

  • Acute and chronic effects of training on health and sports performance;
  • Methodological considerations in the training process for individual and team sports;
  • Innovative equipment for measuring and analyzing performance in individual and team sports;
  • Monitoring training load in athletes and para-athletes;
  • Assessing sleep and wellness in athletes and para-athletes.

We encourage submissions that address gender diversity and include high-performance samples/volunteers across genders, both in Summer and Winter Sports. Additionally, we seek contributions that adopt an integrated approach to providing holistic solutions to complex problems within sports training. Join us in advancing our collective understanding of sports training as we strive to optimize sports performance.

Dr. Gavriil George Arsoniadis
Dr. Rodrigo Zacca
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • training methods
  • training and testing
  • performance analysis
  • training monitoring
  • individual and team sports

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 2886 KiB  
Article
Acute Effects of Drop Jumps on Lower Limb Stiffness and Mechanical and Kinematic Parameters During High-Speed Treadmill Running
by Panagiotis Pappas, Ioannis Stavridis and Giorgos Paradisis
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(1), 242; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15010242 - 30 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1471
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the post-activation performance enhancement effects of drop jumps (DJs) on lower limb stiffness [leg stiffness (Kleg); vertical stiffness (Kvert)] and the related mechanical [maximal ground reaction force (Fmax), vertical displacement of the [...] Read more.
This study aimed to investigate the post-activation performance enhancement effects of drop jumps (DJs) on lower limb stiffness [leg stiffness (Kleg); vertical stiffness (Kvert)] and the related mechanical [maximal ground reaction force (Fmax), vertical displacement of the centre of mass (Δy), and lower limb length (ΔL)] and kinematic parameters [step length (SL), step frequency (SF), flight time (FT), and contact time (CT)] during high-speed treadmill running. For this purpose, 18 male physical education students performed 10 s running bouts on a treadmill at a speed of 6.67 m·s−1 in an experimental condition (EC) or in a control condition (CC). During the EC, following a 5 min treadmill running warm-up at 2.22 m·s−1, the participants were tested pre and 3 min post five DJs, while during the CC, the participants did not perform DJs. The study results revealed that EC significantly increased Fmax, Δy, SL, and FT, while SF decreased after performing drop jumps (mean differences: 0.026 ± 0.007 kN, p = 0.003; 0.001 ± 0.001 m, p = 0.025; 0.034 ± 0.013 m, p = 0.019; 0.05 ± 0.001 s, p = 0.005 and −0.057 ± 0.023 Hz, p = 0.026, respectively). Kleg and Kvert showed no significant differences (p > 0.05) following the preconditioning exercise. The findings suggest that a plyometric stimulus of low volume and a short recovery period prior to high-speed treadmill running may be beneficial to acutely improve running mechanical and kinematic parameters without affecting lower limb stiffness. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Performance Analysis and Training Process in Sports: Bridging Science and Practice)
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Review

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14 pages, 595 KiB  
Review
Modern Handball: A Dynamic System, Orderly Chaotic
by Sebastián Espoz-Lazo and Claudio Hinojosa-Torres
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(7), 3541; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15073541 - 24 Mar 2025
Viewed by 874
Abstract
(1) Background: Handball is conceptualized as a complex dynamic system characterized by emergent behaviors, non-linearity, attractors, and self-organization, influenced by players’ interactions, environmental conditions, and tactical elements. This perspective emphasizes the importance of communication, adaptive strategies, and modern teaching methods like Non-linear Pedagogy [...] Read more.
(1) Background: Handball is conceptualized as a complex dynamic system characterized by emergent behaviors, non-linearity, attractors, and self-organization, influenced by players’ interactions, environmental conditions, and tactical elements. This perspective emphasizes the importance of communication, adaptive strategies, and modern teaching methods like Non-linear Pedagogy for improving technical-tactical behaviors, advocating for a multidisciplinary approach to deepen its understanding. Thus, this narrative review aims to explore how modern theories and approaches can be integrated to provide a deeper understanding of handball’s complexity from a broad and multidisciplinary perspective. (2) Methods: A narrative review approach was employed to integrate key concepts such as chaos theory, self-organization, and non-linear pedagogy as they apply to the game’s technical-tactical dynamics. The methodology involved a comprehensive literature review to identify how emergent perceptual and social interactions influence collective performance. (3) Results: Findings indicate that team performance is not solely dependent on individual skills but on their capacity for synchronization, adaptation, and self-organization in response to competitive demands. Communication and internal cohesion emerged as critical factors for adjustment and autonomous decision-making, framed within Luhmann’s social systems theory. (4) Conclusions: The conclusions suggest that training methodologies should incorporate non-linear approaches that promote self-organization, adaptability, and player autonomy. This multidisciplinary perspective offers a deeper understanding of handball and highlights its applicability to other team sports, maximizing performance through an integrative analysis of social, philosophical, and communicative components. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Performance Analysis and Training Process in Sports: Bridging Science and Practice)
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Other

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12 pages, 1071 KiB  
Case Report
Monitoring of Training Load and Body Composition in Elite Male Kayakers
by José Augusto Rodrigues dos Santos, Giorjines Boppre and Rodrigo Zacca
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(24), 11826; https://doi.org/10.3390/app142411826 - 18 Dec 2024
Viewed by 943
Abstract
Background: Elite kayaking demands peak conditioning, and tracking these athletes reveals the science behind world-class performance. Physiological demands and body composition changes in elite male kayakers were tracked during the preparatory and transition periods of a kayaking competitive season. Methods: Laboratory (body composition [...] Read more.
Background: Elite kayaking demands peak conditioning, and tracking these athletes reveals the science behind world-class performance. Physiological demands and body composition changes in elite male kayakers were tracked during the preparatory and transition periods of a kayaking competitive season. Methods: Laboratory (body composition assessment and a 4 min all-out test in a kayak ergometer) on-field tests (4 × 1500 m incremental intermittent protocol with 30 s rest intervals in a kayaking/rowing track) were applied on separate days to follow eight elite male kayakers (23.1 ± 5.6 y; 80 ± 8.8 kg; 177.0 ± 6.8 cm) at the beginning of the kayaking season (preparatory period, M1; first week of October), 22 weeks later, at the beginning of the transition period (M2; last week of February), and 5 weeks later, at the end of the transition period, i.e., beginning of the competitive period of the season (M3; first week of April). M3 corresponded to the participation in international competitions. Results: Distance at peak oxygen uptake (V˙O2peak) on the kayak ergometer improved by 36.7 m from M1 to M3, the pace at V4 (aerobic capacity) was reduced (improved) by 25.2 s·km−1 from M1 to M2, and 25.6 s·km−1 by M3. Body weight decreased by 2.3 kg from M1 to M2, and fat mass percentage and kilograms decreased by 1.8% and 3.1%, respectively. Fat-free mass increased by 1.9% and 3.1%, respectively. Skinfold measurements showed a decrease in subscapular, suprailiac, abdominal, and geminal skinfold. Aerobic power (V˙O2peak) in absolute values (in L·min−1) improved by 0.7 L·min−1 from M1 to M2, and by 1.1 L·min−1 by M3, and from M2 to M3 was ~0.5 L·min−1. Aerobic power in relative values improved by 15.0 from M1 to M2, and by 6.4 mL·kg−1·min−1 from M2 to M3. Conclusions: Elite male kayakers improved their physiological performance and body composition during the preparatory and transition phases of the competitive season. Notable gains in performance were mainly due to enhanced aerobic power, and positive body composition changes. These findings provide insights for optimizing training strategies and boosting competitive performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Performance Analysis and Training Process in Sports: Bridging Science and Practice)
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