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BACKGROUND Wrestling was an important part of the ancient Olympic Games and is still one of the most popular events of the modern Olympic Games. Studies indicate that general physiologic profile of successful wrestlers is high anaerobic power and capacity, muscular strength, above average aerobic power, exceptional flexibility, fat free mass, and a mesomorphic somatotype. OBJECTIVES The objec...

A number of studies have attempted to predict future Olympic performances in athletics and swimming based on trends displayed in previous Olympic Games. Some have utilised linear models to plot and predict change, whereas others have utilised multiple curve estimation methods based on inverse, sigmoidal, quadratic, cubic, compound, logistic, growth and exponential functions. The non linear mode...

BACKGROUND The Olympic and Paralympic Games rely heavily on volunteers to provide many essential services, including medical care of athletes. OBJECTIVE This preliminary investigation sought to characterise the motivational influences and factors responsible for the satisfaction of Olympic and Paralympic healthcare volunteers. METHODS The 2002 Winter Games polyclinic healthcare volunteers w...

BACKGROUND Little information exists on the illness and injury patterns of athletes preparing for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Among the possible explanations for the current lack of knowledge are the methodological challenges faced in conducting prospective studies of large, heterogeneous groups of athletes, particularly when overuse injuries and illnesses are of concern. OBJECTIVE To d...

This study measures the performance of participating nations at the Olympics, considering the quest for medals as a two-stage Olympic process. The first stage is characterized as athlete preparation (AP) and the second stage as athlete competition (AC). We extend the relational model from the constant returns to scale framework to the variable returns to scale version. The efficiency of each pa...

BACKGROUND Systematic surveillance of injuries and illnesses is the foundation for developing preventive measures in sport. AIM To analyse the injuries and illnesses that occurred during the XXII Olympic Winter Games, held in Sochi in 2014. METHODS We recorded the daily occurrence (or non-occurrence) of injuries and illnesses (1) through the reporting of all National Olympic Committee (NOC)...

OBJECTIVES To conduct a content analysis of pre-Games local media coverage of the potential impact on health and the determinants of health in Newham, the site of the Olympic Park. DESIGN Local newspaper content analysis. SETTING Olympic park host site of the London Borough of Newham. OUTCOME MEASURES Media coverage of employment, physical activity and well-being. RESULTS Three hundred ...

BACKGROUND Injury and illness surveillance during high-level youth sports events is an important first step in health prevention and caretaking of the young elite athletes. AIM To analyse injuries and illnesses that occurred during the 10 days 2nd Youth Olympic Winter Games (YOG), held in Lillehammer 2016. METHODS We recorded the daily occurrence (or non-occurrence) of injuries and illnesse...

The main purpose of the present study was to calculate the probability-based on a Bayesian approach-to win a medal in the Olympic Games given the athlete is seeded and to verify if the number one ranked athlete has any advantage compared to other seeded athletes concerning his/her chances to be Olympic champion. For this, data from athletes who took part in the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic ...