Biomechanical Model of Hurdle Clearance in 100m Hurdle Races: A Case Study

Abstract

Introduction The biomechanical model of hurdle clearance for the 100-m hurdle race is based on the technique of the Australian athlete Sally Pearson, one of the world’s greatest runners of 100-m hurdle events. The greatest achievement of her career thus far has been winning the gold medal in the 100-m hurdle race at the London Olympic Games in 2012. She holds many other top achievements such as the gold medal at the Daegu World Championship in 2011, the gold medal at the 2017 World Championships in London, the silver medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the silver medal at the 2013 World Championship in Moscow. Her personal record for the 100-m hurdle event is 12.28 seconds, which is the sixth fastest time in the history of the event. All these achievements rank Sally Pearson among the most elite athletes of modern athletics. High hurdle races are among the most technically demanding athletic disciplines. According to previous studies (Schluter, 1981; Mero & Luhtanen, 1986; La Fortune, 1988; Bruggemann & Glad, 1990; McDonald & Dapena, 1991; Dapena, 1991; McLean, 1994; Iskra, 1998; Kampmiller, Slamka, & Vanderka, 1999; Čoh, 2001; Blazevich, 2013) the hurdle clearance technique is one of the key elements that determines a competitive result. From a biomechanics standpoint, the 100-m hurdle race combines the cyclic sprint and the acyclic clearance of 10 hurdles with a height of 0.838 m. The athlete must, therefore, have a high level of sprinting skills, exceptional hip joint mobility (flexibility), fast power, and a high level of technical knowledge. During the hurdle clearance, the loss of horizontal velocity must be kept to a minimum. This ability depends on a number of factors, especially those that define the takeoff before the hurdle, the trajectory of the movement of the CM (CM = center of mass) and the landing after the barrier (Kampmiller, Slamka, & Vanderka, 1999; Amritpal & Shamsher, 2015). In order to achieve rational hurdle clearance, the takeoff point before the hurdle and the landing point following the barrier are essential. The correct position of Abstract