Athletic Performance

This experiment assessed the effectiveness of two interventions; mental imagery and physical training as compared to a control group, on their ability to improve visuomotor accuracy, measured by scores achieved on a visuomotor task. For mental imagery participants had to imagine throwing a dart and for physical training participants physically practised dart throwing. Measurements were recorded pre-intervention, after two weeks of training (Mid-intervention), after five weeks of training (Outcome Measure 1) and two weeks after training (Outcome Measure 2). Comparison of Mid-intervention, Outcome Measure 1 and Outcome Measure 2 with baseline showed both interventions to significantly increase performance on dart throwing compared to the Control group. Our findings show that, as well as traditional physical practise, mental imagery can effectively improve performance on a fine visuomotor task. This is an important finding highlighting possible applications of mental imagery in those with limited motor abilities to maintain or enhance motor movement.

Little research has been carried out on the common symptoms and mental disorders in Iranian elite athletes. The purpose of this study was to identify the mental health problems in Iranian elite athletes as a retrospective study at the National Olympic Academy (NOA) of Iran. The present study is a cross-sectional and retrospective descriptive study which was conducted by evaluating the athletes' psychological documents. A total of 143 athletes (male, n= 83, female, n= 60) were analyzed from the population of elite athletes (n=240) who referred to the mental training and consulting center in the NOA during the years 2007-2021. The results showed that most athletes referred to the center to improve their performance (37.8%). Anxiety (27.3%), depression (16.8%), interpersonal problems (11.2%), impulsiveness (2.8%) post-traumatic stress (PTSD) (2.8%), sleep disturbance (1.4%) were the most common mental disorders reported by athletes. In addition, surveying the relationship between demographic characteristics and mental health issues revealed a relationship between gender and mental health problems; there was no relationship between other demographic variables with mental health problems. The results of this study illuminate the spread of common mental health problems in Iranian elite athletes over the last fourteen years. Screening and diagnosing psychological problems provide a better understanding of the application of appropriate psychological interventions and improving the mental health of elite athletes. Accordingly, future research may focus on better understanding of mental health problems reported in this study and studies them in a larger population.

Background: COVID-19 transmission in team sports is common, but it's uncertain if face masks impact handball players' performance. Aim: This study investigated the effects of wearing surgical face masks during handball exercise for four weeks on athletic performance. Materials and Methods: Thirty-four adolescent handball female players and 17 trained females as the control group were selected in this study. Players were divided into two groups: the mask group (n= 17; age: 12.63±0.67 years, BMI: 20.61±1.19 kg/m2) and the unmasked group (n= 17; age: 13.45± 1.03 years, BMI: 21.08±1.46 kg/m2), who underwent 4-week training with and without face masks, respectively. Performance tests were conducted before and after the training program, which include: countermovement jump (CMJ), squat jump (SJ), 10m, 20m, and 30m sprint, medicine ball throw, and Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 1 (Yo-YoIRT1). Results: After four weeks, both mask and unmasked groups showed significant improvements in CMJ, SJ, 10m, 20m, and 30m sprint, medicine ball throw, and Yo-YoIRT1 (P≤ 0.05). Conclusion: This study concludes that adolescent handball players can safely use face masks during physical activity without experiencing negative effects on their athletic performance.