A KINEMATIC PROFILE OF THE APPROACH RUN OF NOVICE LONG JUMPERS

This study determined the kinematics of the final 11 steps of the long jump approach (LJA) for 19 novice long jumpers. Associations between takeoff accuracy and jump performance were identified, and comparisons of LJA kinematics were made with previous investigations of horizontal jumps performed by expert long jumpers. Results indicated that absolute takeoff error was not an important determinant of jump distance for the novice long jumpers. Additionally, novice jumpers differed from expert jumpers in terms of the relationships among specific variables. The results suggest that kinematic variables that appear to be causally related to jump performance in experts may not play a similar role in the performance of novices. Hypotheses for these differences were offered. Differences between the LJAs of novice and expert long jumpers warrant further investigation so that their origins can be determined and used to develop effective training regimes.