Electronic Theses and Dissertations (Masters)
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10539/37972
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Item Modelling the badminton jump smash for injury prevention and performance enhancement(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Chohan, Raees Ghalib; Mangera, TaahirahBadminton is considered the fastest competitive racket sport. To gain a competitive edge, athletes commonly execute a forward jump smash to return the shuttlecock with high speeds and steep angles. Research has shown that common injuries in badminton, resulting from incorrect landing during the execution of the jump smash, include rupture of the Achilles tendon and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL). There is a need to identify safe landing techniques to minimise risk of injury while preserving the performance of the manoeuvre. This study involved assessing four different landing techniques. The techniques involved varying the initial contact with the ground upon landing. The landing techniques assessed were the Normal Landing Technique (NLT), Toe-First (TF) technique, Flat Foot (FF) technique and the Heel First (HF) technique. Data was obtained using an Xsens motion capture suit which uses inertial sensors placed on body segments to capture kinematic and kinetic data. Sixteen athletes from the South African Badminton team participated, however, only data from ten athletes were considered due to the experimental obstacles identified during the analysis of the data. Kinematic data, Newton- Euler equations and inverse kinematics were used to model the ground reaction forces and moments at the foot, ankle, knee and hip joints. The ground reaction forces were validated alongside data collected from a Bertec Force Plate. By use of the Stretch-Shortening Cycle, the force vs time profile of each landing technique was assessed to classify if a landing technique was “good,” “moderate” or “poor.” The angular velocity of body segments was also assessed at various phases of the jump smash to determine the effect on performance. The study found that there are no statistical differences in the ground reaction forces when varying the landing technique. When analysing the force vs time profiles during landing, the Normal Landing Technique (NLT), which typically involves landing on the ball of the foot, and the Toe- First (TF) technique exhibited spring like characteristics and were therefore classified as good landing techniques. The Flat Foot (FF) and Heel First (HF) techniques displayed impact peaks and were therefore considered poor landing techniques. The Heel First and Flat Foot techniques produced the largest reaction moment at the floor and in all lower limb joints, therefore contributing to a higher risk of injury. There were no statistical differences in segment angular velocity when varying the landing technique. Further analysis on differences in biomechanical responses between male and female athletes is advised.