Acta Medica Medianae (Sep 2010)
READINESS PROFILE OF JUNIOR CYCLISTS DETERMINED BY LEIPZIG TEST
Abstract
The aim of this paper was to define the readiness profile of junior cyclists determined by the Leipzig test. The second aim was to find out if there were differences in functional performance among cyclists in different disciplines, such as: road cyclists, mountain bikers and sprinters. All cyclists (n=18) were tested with Leipzig test protocol on a bicycle ergometer by increasing the load by 40W per minute, pedalling cadence 90- 100rev/min. The hearth rate was measured at the beginning and at the end of the test, together with the maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max). The results have shown that the maximal oxygen uptake among national junior cyclists in all disciplines was VO2max 56.42±5.82 ml•min-1kg-1, among mountain biking cyclist VO2max was 61.43±4.94, sprinters VO2max 56.78±3.33 and for cross-country cyclists VO2max 53.37±7.82. The statistical analysis of the functional performance results has snown that between subsamples of cyclists there were no significant differences on general level. However, the partial analysis has snown that there is a statistically significant difference between the groups in the hart rate values on an anaerobic threshold (F value 4.547, p=0.032). In conclusion, the tested cyclists were prepared using general training methods even if they had competitions in different disciplines. Therefore, the level of readiness shows that the training process for young cyclists which is used in Serbia is not specific for the competition level and discipline.
