Asymmetry of Step Length in Relationship to Leg Strength in 200 meters Sprint of different Performance Levels

The purpose of this study was to quantify and compare asymmetry of stride length during 200 m sprint in different levels of performance. Six sprinters from national and regional levels participated in the study. They were assigned to 3 groups: school-boys (novice sprinters) junior (intermediate) and senior (advance – national and regional level) category. This study investigated selected kinematic parameters with special focus on stride length. The resulting values were measurements of each stride length (rounded-off to near-est full centimeter) during a 200 m sprint, using a manual stride measurement method. The findings indi-cate that the asymmetry of stride length exists in all categories, and the impact on decreasing velocities of the youngest sprinters (school-boys) are significantly associated with shorter strides, whereas cadence has little change. However, when a statistical adjustment was made for each group of runners it was found that more advanced runners did not have a significantly higher level of asymmetry with stride length at any given velocity.