The aim of this study was to track and analyze the 100-m Breaststroke performance stability throughout elite swimmers` careers. 35 Portuguese male top-50 swimmers were analyzed for seven consecutive seasons between the ages of 12 and 18 years old. Best performances were collected from ranking tables. Longitudinal assessment was performed based on two approaches: (i) mean stability was analyzed by descriptive statistics and ANOVA repeated measures for each season followed by a post-hoc test (Bonferroni test), (ii) normative stability was analyzed with self-correlation (Malina, 2001) and the Cohen`s Kappa tracking index (Landis and Koch, 1977). There was a 100-m Breaststroke performance enhancement from child to adult age. The overall career performance prediction was low. The change from 13 to 14 years can be a milestone, where the ability to predict the final swimmer`s performance level strongly increases.
© Copyright 2010 Biomechanics and Medicine in Swimming XI. Veröffentlicht von Norwegian School of Sport Sciences. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.