Principal investigators for the study
Associate Professor Eva Skillgate, Karolinska Institutet. eva.skillgate@ki.se
PhD Fredrik Johansson, Karolinska Institutet. Fredrik.johansson.1@ki.se
Many sports have evolved tremendously over the last 10–15 years, and tennis is no exception. The physical, technical, tactical, and mental skills required lead young players to specialize in their sport at an early age. The physical demands include all physical qualities such as endurance, strength, speed, mobility, coordination, and balance. During their youth, players must therefore prepare gradually to eventually meet the demands placed on them at the highest level (ITF, ATP, WTA).
From an injury perspective, previous studies have shown for quite some time that tennis is demanding on muscles, tendons, and joints, making a good balance between training load, competition, and recovery extremely important.
In this study, which is unique and the first of its kind, we want to examine how our young Swedish tennis players train, compete, and recover. Furthermore, we want to investigate whether there is any link to shoulder and/or back injuries.
Over 3 intensive weeks in February 2018, a PHYSIO team will travel across the country to conduct screening tests on our young Swedish tennis players. Each region will organize test sites and invite players to participate in the screenings. In addition to the screening, selected players born between 1999 and 2005 will complete a survey and be followed up weekly for 12 months via an app, where they will answer questions about factors such as training volume and injuries.
In conjunction with our major national tournaments (JSM, Båstad, SALK), we will be hosting short workshops on the subject of training volume and load, and how these relate to injuries.
Research takes time, but our ambition is to analyze baseline data by the summer of 2018 and then gradually process and analyze incoming data on an ongoing basis.
Please contact fredrik.johansson.1@ki.se if you have any questions or concerns regarding the study. We look forward to an exciting journey!
Fredrik Johansson
