(6) COMPARISON OF DROP JUMP PERFORMANCE IN MALE VERSUS FEMALE COLLEGIATE TRACK ATHLETES

In collegiate athletics, both male and female teams undergo similar training within the same sport. However, male athletes typically outperform female athletes in strength, jump, and sprint absolute performances, or in maximum muscle power. The drop jump (DJ) is an effective measure of plyometric ability, which is important for track athletes. Yet, the difference in absolute and relative DJ performance between male and female athletes has not been fully explored.

Purpose: To compare DJ performance variables between male and female track athletes with or without accounting for body weight.

Methods: Twenty-two NCAA Division I track athletes (n = 10 males, n = 12 females) participated in this study. Each athlete underwent a series of three DJ trials during their indoor pre-season testing session from a 45.72 cm platform onto two force platforms sampling at 1000Hz. The best trial was subsequently used for analysis. DJ variables compared were drop jump height, reactive strength index (RSI), stiffness, as well as absolute and relative measures of peak breaking force, peak propulsive force, eccentric impulse, and concentric impulse. Independent samples t-test were used to compare the differences between the drop jump variables of male and female athletes with effect size determined by a Cohen’s d. Significance was set at p < 0.05 for all analysis.

Results: There was no statistically significant difference between jump height (cm) (Male=39.68±9.29, Female=34.43±5.14, t=-1.68, p=0.11, d=-0.72), RSI (Male=1.88±0.50, Female=1.79±0.34, t=-0.49, p=0.63, d=-0.21), absolute peak breaking force (N) (Male=5432.68±1410.69, Female=4632.60 ±1203.31, t=-1.44, p=0.17, d=-0.62), and stiffness (Male=46.88±27.85, Female=40.08±18.12, t=-0.69, p=0.50, d=-0.296). Statistical analysis showed differences between male and female athletes when referring to some of the absolute measures, including absolute peak propulsive force (N) (Male=4256.33±897.23, Female=3343.08±761.63, t=-2.58, p=0.018, d=-1.11), absolute eccentric impulse (N/s) (Male=295.98±52.30, Female=211.76±15.87, t=-5.32, p=< 0.001, d=-2.28) and absolute concentric impulse (N/s) (Male=322.46±53.63, Female=235.74±25.13, t=-4.99, p=< 0.001, d=-2.14). Regarding relative values (accounting for body weight), there were no differences in relative peak breaking force (N/kg) (Male=68.38±17.90, Female=72.91±12.75, t=0.69, p=0.49, d=0.29), relative peak propulsive force (N/kg) (Male=53.50±10.91, Female=52.95±9.90, t=-0.12, p=0.90, d=-0.05), relative eccentric impulse (N/s/kg) (Male=3.70±0.48, Female=3.39±0.30, t=-1.83, p=0.08, d = -0.78) and relative concentric impulse (N/s/kg) (Male=4.03±0.47, Female=3.76±0.29, t=-1.61, p=0.12, d=-0.69).

Conclusion: Upon analysis, significant differences were found between male and female athletes in relation to absolute measures of both eccentric and concentric impulse, as well as the peak propulsive force. However, after accounting for body weight, there were no differences in any DJ performance variables between male and female track athletes. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The similar performance in DJ variables suggest that male and female track athletes can be trained similarly resulting in similar relative performance in the drop jump.

Acknowledgements: None