MORE ATHLETIC SKI JUMPING! A LIGHTWEIGHT FORMULA SOLVES COMPLEX PROBLEM

Dangerous underweight among top athletes can now be detected even more accurately using the new Mass Index. Unlike the Body Mass Index used in the past, this innovative method also takes into account individual leg length. The new index was developed as part of a project by the Austrian Science Fund FWF, which had already provided the basis for resolving the problem of underweight in ski jumping. The project was based on wide-ranging field studies during the Olympic Games.

Less is more, at least when it comes to body weight and jumping distance in ski jumping, as the lighter you

are, the further you fly. But when is “less” actually “too little”? When does low weight distort competition and become chronic underweight and how can these harmful developments in sport be countered?

These were precisely the issues investigated by a team led by Prof. Wolfram Müller of the Center of Human Performance Research at the University of Graz as part of the project “Problems with underweight among competitive athletes”. One of the results is a much improved facility for assessing underweight and overweight. The new measure for determining relative body weight is called the Mass Index (MI) and in the future it will augment or even replace the Body Mass Index (BMI), which does not take into account the proportions of the body and, in particular, individual leg length.

DO LONG LEGS MAKE YOU THIN?
With his new method, Prof. Müller offers more precise calculation of relative body weight, as he explains: "So far - based on the BMI calculation - people with long legs are assessed as too thin and, conversely, people with extremely short legs are quickly branded as overweight. However, both of these assessments are incorrect as the calculation method is based simply on a person’s size. In contrast, the Mass Index calculated by us takes into account the ratio between the legs and the upper part of the body.”

The results obtained have already led to a reduction in problems with underweight for ski jumpers. Studies of athletes’ physical build in connection with aerodynamic measurements and calculations persuaded the International Skiing Association to change the ski jumping regulations from the 2004/05 season onwards. Extremely light athletes are now obliged to jump with shorter skis. Since this new competition rule was implemented, practically no more underweight jumpers have got themselves into this condition through starvation.

Image and complete text:
http://www.fwf.ac.at/en/public_relations/press/pv200702-en.html

Scientific Contact:
Prof. Wolfram Müller
University of Graz
Human Performance Research Graz
Max Mell Allee 11
8010 Graz, Austria
T +43 / 650 / 69 41 66 9
E wolfram.mueller@meduni-graz.at

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