Recent studies have shown the contribution of genetic determinants to athletes' physical ability. However, despite the fact that cognitive abilities like self-control and stress-tolerance influence athletes' competitive performance, few studies to date have investigated the association between genetic polymorphism, which is linked to cognitive ability and athletic performance. The present study investigated the link between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), which are known to exert influences on dopaminergic neural function and competitive performance of swimmers. The results have revealed superior competitive performance in competitive swimmers with Met allele of catechol-O-methyltransferase Val158Met polymorphism than those with Val/Val genotype. The investigated SNPs of DRD2 and DRD3 were not associated with swimmer's competitive performance. This finding indicates that genetic polymorphism linked to cognitive ability influences the athletes' performance.
The present study aimed to clarify the effects of a method of teaching backstroke skills that focuses on breathing and its influence on improving breathing skills. The subjects were nine female collegiate recreational swimmers who could swim backstroke for approximately 25 m. The subjects participated in an educational course comprising eight units. The first half of the course mainly focused on acquiring basic backstroke skills and the second half mainly focused on refining stroke motion and being able to breath in synchrony with stroke motion. The effects of the program were assessed by analyzing intra-nasal pressure (INP), swimming velocity (V), stroke rate (SR) and stroke length (SL). Backstroke skills were evaluated based on observational standard criteria. As a result, the subjects' INP changed their breathing pattern in synchrony with stroke motion. The score of the observational standard criteria was significantly increased for all items. In addition, although V and SL were significantly improved, there was no significant difference in SR. These findings suggest that the method of teaching in this study was effective for recreational swimmers.
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