Abstract

This study examined the relationships postural sway, aiming time, the cardiac cycle time and the placement of the first finger movement within the electrocardiac cycle, with the quality of the arrow shot. A small group of elite male and female archers who shot either the recurve or the compound bow, freestyle or bare bow was used in this study. A total of 240 arrows were shot, classifed as being of good, average or bad quality and analysed in detail. The analyses were undertaken over two occasions up to 100 days apart. There area of postural sway, as measured by the movement of the centre of pressure coordinates, varied significantly both within and between trials for all archers and for all quality of arrows shot. There was a tendency for the area of postural sway to increase as the quality of the arrow shot decreased. This increase in postural sway exceeded, for arrows of bad quality, that exhibited as normal postural sway when standing relaxed and addressing the target with the hands at the side. Aiming time was variable within the quality of arrow shot, although is was consistent for each archer. In some cases the aiming time increased as the quality of the arrow decreased, whereas in the case of bare bow archery the aiming time tended to decrease as the quality of the arrow deteriorated. The cardiac cycle time increased significantly as the archers approached the loose oof the good quality arrows but there was no significant increrase in cardiac cycle time when arrows of average or bad quality were shot. Verf.-Referat (gekuerzt)