Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for Sports Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Biomechanical Research to Optimize Performance and Reduce Injury Risk in Team Sports

Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
Published Papers

A special issue of Sports (ISSN 2075-4663).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 5910

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Elena Mainer-Pardos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Health Sciences Faculty, Universidad San Jorge, Autov A23 km 299, Villanueva de Gállego, 50830 Zaragoza, Spain
Interests: physical performance; adolescent and maturation; exercise testing; body composition; exercise intervention; kinetics; kinematics; neuromuscular; injury prevention; reliability and validity of devices; team sports
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Performance optimisation and reducing injury risk are essential concerns in modern team sports, where athletes are exposed to high physical and physiological demands across training and competition. The scientific understanding of sports biomechanics plays a critical role in developing tailored interventions that enhance performance while minimising injury risk.

This Special Issue invites original research, reviews, and methodological studies exploring the multifactorial components of athletic performance in team-based disciplines. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following: biomechanical analysis of sport-specific movements; neuromuscular profiling; maturation and growth-related adaptations; the influence of body composition on biomechanical efficiency and load distribution; monitoring of body composition and its relationship with both physiological and biomechanical performance indicators and injury risk; and advances in exercise testing and functional assessment. We also welcome contributions that evaluate the validity and reliability of field-based and wearable technologies in applied sport contexts.

We encourage interdisciplinary approaches that bridge biomechanics, physiology, sports medicine, and performance analytics to propose evidence-based solutions for coaches, sports scientists, and healthcare professionals. By showcasing cutting-edge research, this Special Issue aims to contribute to the optimisation of athlete monitoring and the development of innovative strategies to enhance performance and reduce injury risk in team sports.

Dr. Elena Mainer-Pardos
Guest Editor

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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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. Sports is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 1800 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

biomechanics
performance
injury prevention
neuromuscular
body composition
exercise testing
wearable technology
reliability
monitoring
adolescent
maturation
strength and conditioning
team sports

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

Download All Papers

Order results

Result details

Show export options Show export options

Select all

Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

14 pages, 634 KB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Anthropometry in Decision-Making for Injury Prevention Among Elite Flag Football Players

by Luis Gerardo Vázquez-Villarreal, Luis Felipe Talavera-Hernández, Martha Patricia Dergal-Irigoyen, Claudia Maceroni, Eleanor Louise Travis-Carr, José Miguel Martínez-Sanz and Nidia Rodriguez-Sanchez

Sports 2026, 14(4), 140; https://doi.org/10.3390/sports14040140 - 1 Apr 2026

Viewed by 717

Abstract

Although Flag Football (FF) is growing worldwide, the literature to guide sports sciences in preventing injuries is scarce. The aim of this study was to analyse how anthropometric characteristics were associated with injury in elite FF players. Athletes completed a full profile according to the International Society of Advances in Kinanthropometry (ISAK), including weight, height, sitting height, arm span length, skinfolds, girths, length and breadth bones, and an injury questionnaire was administered. Logistic regression models and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves were conducted. In total, 108 FF national team players, 34 female (26.7 ± 4.3 years old) and 74 male (26.9 ± 5.1 years old), participated. Of these, 62% FF players reported injuries. Relaxed arm and flexed and contracted arm girths are related to increased or reduced injury risks (Odds = 2.932, p = 0.008; Odds = 0.335, p = 0.009, respectively), while longer tibia length and higher muscle mass also increase the risk (Odds = 1.407, p = 0.034; Odds = 1.223, p = 0.010, respectively). Specific cut-off points were defined by sex, such as hip circumference, established at 103 cm in the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) model for males, increasing the risk by 5 times. Anthropometric characteristics were related to injury incidence and could be used by sports science practitioners as an efficient decision-making tool to describe and analyse the static and dynamic components of FF players in injury prevention. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomechanical Research to Optimize Performance and Reduce Injury Risk in Team Sports)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 1891 KB

Open AccessArticle

Assessing High-Intensity Acceleration Efforts Using Local Positioning System—Introducing the Concept of the Relative Acceleration Threshold to Ice Hockey

by Christian Bielmann, Karin Fischer-Sonderegger, Quirin Söhnlein, Wolfgang Taube and Markus Tschopp

Sports 2026, 14(2), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/sports14020062 - 4 Feb 2026

Viewed by 1044

Abstract

Current methods for assessing acceleration efforts (acc_efforts) in ice hockey do not account for the influence of initial skating speed on maximal voluntary acceleration capacity, which may lead to a biased evaluation of acc_effort intensity. In this study, we introduce the conceptual approach of the relative acceleration threshold (rel_threshold) to ice hockey and outline its potential benefits for the assessment of acc_efforts. Locomotion data derived from observations of 17 players across 10 official games were used to model the initial-skating-speed-dependent maximal voluntary acceleration capacity (a_max–v_{init capacity}), from which a team-specific rel_threshold was determined (rel_{threshold_75%} = 3.23 − 0.365v_init), and, subsequently, applied to assess acc_efforts alongside a fix threshold set at 2 m·s⁻² (fix_{threshold_2}). Differences in acc_efforts depended on the method used (rel_{threshold_75%} vs. fix_{threshold_2}) as well as the playing position when using the rel_{threshold_75%}. The fix_{threshold_2} reported 89.1 ± 35.8% more acc_efforts than the rel_{threshold_75%}. However, only one-third of these acc_efforts exceeded rel_{threshold_75%}, which is considered indicative of neuromuscularly intense acc_efforts according to the modeled a_max–v_{init capacity}. Moreover, at skating speeds above 4 m·s⁻¹, the fix_{threshold_2} only assessed a negligible number of acc_efforts, whereas the rel_{threshold_75%} assessed 27.2 ± 9.3% of all its acc_efforts. In line with established theoretical rationales, the observational findings of this study suggest that an acceleration threshold adapted to the initial skating speed offers a conceptually more valid approach to assessing acc_efforts in ice hockey. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomechanical Research to Optimize Performance and Reduce Injury Risk in Team Sports)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 2086 KB

Open AccessArticle

Biomechanical Model of Non-Contact Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Concerning Shin Angle and Field Surface Traction Parameters—With a Piezo2 Interpretation

by Tekla Sümegi, Balázs Sonkodi, Krisztián Havanecz, István Berkes and Bence Kopper

Sports 2025, 13(12), 414; https://doi.org/10.3390/sports13120414 - 21 Nov 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1492

Abstract

Background: Biomechanical factors behind non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in soccer and handball are still not fully understood. Unfortunately, ACL injuries more frequently appear in game situations. Aim: To describe a possible ACL injury mechanism in male professional handball players using MRI images and our own biomechanical model. Hypothesis: The friction parameters of the surface have extreme importance in the non-contact ACL injury mechanism. If the surface is more slippery, the horizontal component of the ground reaction force (GRF) will be smaller, consequently the torque originating from the GRF acting on the knee will be greater during the landing phase of a vertical jump, resulting in greater abduction effect on the knee. Consequently, the risk of knee injury increases. Methods: We have collected MRI images and anthropometric data of 15 healthy male individuals (age 19–23) to create a biomechanical model to calculate the torques in the knee to obtain more knowledge about ACL injury mechanism. Results: The lower extremity lean angle during the landing phase of a jump and friction parameters substantially affect abduction torques in the knee and consequently the risk of ACL injury occurrence. Conclusions: The landing posture when the knee is fully extended during landing is highly unfortunate for the ACL, compared to when the knee is partially flexed. If the knee is fully extended, greater hip abduction will increase the risk of an ACL injury, and if the surface is more slippery, e.g., the surface is wet, the possibility of ACL injury is even greater. In addition, we also applied a molecular working hypothesis through acquired Piezo2 channelopathy theory, as the proposed preceding neuromuscular disruptor prior to non-contact ACL injury. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomechanical Research to Optimize Performance and Reduce Injury Risk in Team Sports)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

14 pages, 519 KB

Open AccessArticle

Change-of-Direction Deficit and Positional Physical Profiles in Youth Futsal Players: A Cross-Sectional Study

by Oscar Villanueva-Guerrero, Oliver Gonzalo-Skok, Rafael Albalad-Aiguabella and Elena Mainer-Pardos

Sports 2025, 13(8), 263; https://doi.org/10.3390/sports13080263 - 12 Aug 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1784

Abstract

This study aimed to describe and assess differences among playing positions, to determine playing position profiles, and to analyze the relationships between the change-of-direction deficit (CODD) percentage and the other anthropometric and performance variables. A total of 98 young futsal players (age: 17 ± 1 years) from the highest national level in Spain were assessed using a cross-sectional design. Anthropometric variables such as height and body mass were recorded. The performance tests included countermovement jumps; horizontal jumps; sprint tests (10 m and 25 m); change-of-direction (COD) tests, including a 10 m test with one COD of 180° (COD180) and a 25 m test with 4 CODs (V-cut); and the percentage CODD. Furthermore, asymmetries were recorded. The group comparisons were considered statistically significant at p ≤ 0.05 and were supported by the effect sizes and mean differences. Significant differences were found among playing positions, showing that pivots and goalkeepers were significantly taller than left- and right-wingers and defenders (p < 0.05, effect size (ES) = −1.42 to 0.72). Goalkeepers were significantly slower than the rest of the positions in COD180 to the left (p < 0.05, ES = 1.32 to 1.89). A very large association was found between the CODDs of 25 m and 25 m (p < 0.001; r = −0.72). These results suggest that pivots and goalkeepers are taller and larger than the other players. However, aside from goalkeepers, no differences in performance variables were observed among the outfield players. In addition, a lower %CODD is associated with a faster COD performance, highlighting its importance in training. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomechanical Research to Optimize Performance and Reduce Injury Risk in Team Sports)

► Show Figures

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Biomechanical Research to Optimize Performance and Reduce Injury Risk in Team Sports

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

Research

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI