Training and injuries amongst elite female orienteers.
BACKGROUND
A study was carried out on the patterns of injury amongst elite female orienteers.


METHODS
A retrospective questionnaire was administered which contained questions pertaining to training practices such as quality, quantity and type. This was followed by a section investigating general to specific injury problems, regarding their occurrence and effect on training. Members of various national orienteering squads (elite group; n = 19) and competitors of an elite level in Great Britain (sub-elite group; n = 9) completed these questionnaires. As this was a descriptive study, no intervention was carried out.


RESULTS
The sub-elite orienteers trained less than the elite during the off-season (p < 0.01) but there was no significant difference in the distribution and/or likely cause of injuries between the groups. Only 32% of the subjects did their training predominantly on the road while the others ran on either off-road terrain or a mixture. Injuries occurred in 68% of the respondents. Only 4% of them suffered upper body injuries. Ankle injuries were the most common injuries. The proportion of injuries to the knee (16%) and ankle (43%) in orienteers was the reverse of what is normally found in runners.


CONCLUSIONS
Orienteers suffer certain sport specific injuries such as ankle sprain. This is likely to be related to their training predominantly on rough surfaces.
Creagh
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U
Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Science, Liverpool John Moores University, UK.
Reilly
T
T
D016512:Ankle Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007718:Knee Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D010806:Physical Education and Training; D010807:Physical Endurance; D012420:Running / Q000293:injuries*