Sport Science

Aim: The main aim of the ‘Sport Science’ research strand of the Peter Harrison Centre for Disability Sport led by Dr Vicky Tolfrey is to develop disability sports knowledge to provide benefit to athletes and coaches at both elite and grass roots level.

Overview: Although the emphasis of the centre to date lies in physiology, the centre plans to use a multidisciplinary approach, which includes applied research from a physiological, biomechanical, anatomical and psychological perspective. This will be achieved by bringing together colleagues with a collective interest in disability sport with a Paralympic Focus.

• Wheelchair Propulsion & Mechanical Efficiency
• Nutritional, Anthropometric & Bone Health Aspects of Wheelchair Athletes
• Physiology of Wheelchair Tennis
• Training Strategies for Wheelchair Participants
• Physiology of Disability Football
• Immune function and infection risk in wheelchair athletes

Hand-rim propulsion is a guided movement that is regulated highly by the rim curvature and its speed and direction of movement. Within these constraints participants are free to adopt different arm frequencies, propulsion modes or both in such a way that suits their requirements at a given wheelchair propulsion velocity or task. In terms of arm frequency, a considerable degree of inter-individual variations is seen at a given speed, resistance level and/or power output. Despite this, hand-rim wheelchair propulsion remains relatively inefficient reporting gross efficiency values ranging from 2-10% during everyday activities and around 12% in studies using trained athletes at high speeds and racing chair configurations. This research programme is designed to help further understand the possible underlying mechanisms of the low efficiencies in hand rim wheelchair propulsion.

Research co-ordinator:  Dr Vicky Tolfrey

Research Investigator: John Lenton

External collaborators:

Manchester Metropolitan University - Prof Neil Fowler
Center for Human Movement Sciences, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen - Prof Lucas van der Woude
University College London - Dr Graham Nicholson and Prof Martin Ferguson-Pell
University of Pittsburgh - Prof. Rory Cooper

Projects:

1.The effects of push strategy on mechanical efficiency has produced this latest publication:

Wheelchair propulsion: effects of experience and push strategy on efficiency and perceived exertion. Lenton JP, Fowler, NE, van der Woude L, Goosey-Tolfrey VL. Published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism, 2008 Oct; 33(5) pp 870-9.

2. Ergonomics of Wheelchair Configuration for Optimum Sports Performance

The aim of this research programme into the optimisation of sports wheelchair design is to examine selected physiological and propulsion technique parameters associated to chair-set up for the execution of wheelchair propulsion skills of acceleration, braking and turning.

a. What makes a good sports wheelchair - athlete's views.

b. The effect of glove type on wheelchair rugby sports performance. Barry Mason's poster on this project won him first prize at the 2008 BPA conference.

c. Seat height and wheeling performance.

To find out further information about researchers in this topic area please look at the BioMedExperts website.

RGK are sponsors of wheelchairs and spares to all GB National Teams including GBWBA. See: http://www.rgklife.com/

Back to Top

Little data is available with regard to the nutritional intakes or requirements of wheelchair athletes and this area of study is an exciting step towards being able to provide our athletes with much more detailed and individualised information.

Research co-ordinators:  Dr Susan Shirreffs and Professor Ron Maughan

Internal collaborators: Dr Katherine Brooke-Wavell (Human Sciences) and Dr Keith Tolfrey (SSES)

External collaborators:

Liverpool John Moores University – Prof Tom Reilly and Laura Sutton
Manchester Metropolitan University – Prof Joern Rittweger
Coventry University – Dr Mike Price
British Paralympic Association - Jeanette Crosland

Sponsors: PHC – PhD Studentship: Katherine Black (completed 2008), Lucozade Sport Science Academy (LSSA) and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).

To find out further information about LSSA please open this link to see the LSSA Newsletter Issue 10 which features an article on Dr Vicky Tolfrey.

Studentships: Louise Croft (SSES) and Mhairi Keil (EIS)

Projects:

1. Fluid Balance (sweat loss and fluid intake) and thermoregulation (ability to control the body’s internal temperature) of athletes with a disability.

2. Nutritional profiles of wheelchair athletes.

3. The relationship between dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and body composition obtained by skinfolds in competitive wheelchair athletes.

4. Tibia geometry with spinal cord injury.

5. Energy expenditure of Paralympic athletes.

Back to Top

 Please note that this project finished in Dec 2008

The aim of this project is to establish a database describing the key physiological aspects of wheelchair tennis performance. Various anthropometric and physiological are assessed in a laboratory and field-based environment. Topical issues relating to performance are also addressed (e.g., thermoregulation).

Research co-ordinators:  Dr Vicky Tolfrey and Dr Keith Tolfrey

External collaborators:

Liverpool John Moores University – Prof Greg Atkinson
Manchester Metropolitan University – Craig Boyd
Coventry University – Dr Mike Price
Brighton University - Dr Nick Webborn (MD) and Dr Paul Castle

Sponsor: Tennis Foundation – Research Assistant: John Lenton

Projects:

1. Physiological profiling - Poster on Physiological support: GB wheelchair tennis in Florida 2007 by Lenton JP & Goosey-Tolfrey, VL.

2. Cooling strategies - has produced the following publication:

The effectiveness of hand cooling at reducing exercise-induced hyperthermia and improving distance-race performance in wheelchair and able-bodied athletes - by Goosey-Tolfrey VL, Swainson MG, Boyd C, Atkinson G, & Tolfrey K. Published in the Journal of Applied Physiology April 2008.

3. Validation of field based testing for wheelchair athletes - has produced the following publication:

The multi-stage fitness test as a predictor of endurance fitness in wheelchair athletes - Goosey-Tolfrey VL & Tolfrey K. Published in the Journal of Sports Science, March 2008.

Back to Top

Research in Paralympic sport is limited and the documentation of effective training principles for the wheelchair athlete are still being developed. The aim of this project is to increase the knowledge about training and whether the guidelines from able-bodied participants can be applied to a wheelchair sports context.  

Research co-ordinators:  Dr Vicky Tolfrey

Research Assistant Christof Leicht

External collaborators:

Manchester Metropolitan University – Dr Hans Degens
Swiss Paraplegic Centre – Dr Claudio Perret

Projects:

1. The use of ‘rating of perceived exertion (RPE)’ for monitoring training intensity in wheelchair athletes.

2. Inspiratory muscle training and wheelchair performance.

Back to Top

The aim of this project is to establish a database describing the key physiological aspects of disability football. Various anthropometric and physiological parameters are assessed in a laboratory and field-based environment.

External driven project: Craig Boyd (MMU)

External collaborators:

Liverpool John Moores University – Dr Barry Drust
PHC, Loughborough University – Dr Vicky Tolfrey

Projects:

1. Physiological profiling.

Back to Top

Intense exercise and training can result in an impairment of immune function that can impact on risk of subsequent infection. There is a strong neuroendocrine influence on the immune response to exercise and training, yet little data is available with regard to measures of immune function in wheelchair athletes. This project aims to provide such information.

Research co-ordinator: Dr Lettie Bishop

Research assistant: Christof Leicht

Projects:

1. Mucosal immune function in wheelchair athletes.

Back to Top