Team handball: working demands in match play and in training - Position specific demands measured with use of integrated technology
This project aimed to investigate the working demands of high level, female team handball players, with the use of inertial measurement units. In addition, the project aims to investigate the validity of a commercial available local positioning system.
This project was be conducted in three different parts. In the first part, we will onitored fficial games with the national team. The games were analyzed for physical differences between playing positions and if fatigue occured during match play. Part two of the project consisted of monitoring different training drills and official matches. In this part, we wanted to look at differences between the drills, and compare them to official match intensity. In the two first parts of the project, the players were equipped with inertial measurement units to measure the intensity. In part three of the project we did a validation study of a local (indoor) positioning system, for use in indoor team sports.
The studies show that PlayerLoad™ and high-intensity events (HIE) with the use of inertial measurement units was reliable, as long as it was not divided into intensity bands. The studies demonstrated a high occurrence of HIEs in female team handball. Differences existed between playing positions and between playing standards in the number of HIEs in match play. The results also suggest that PlayerLoad™·min-1 is not sustained throughout matches in international female team handball matches. The number of players involved in game-based training drills appeared to affect the intensity of the drill, whereby a lower number of players resulted in an increase of both PlayerLoad™∙min-1 and HIE∙min-1. Positional differences were apparent when comparing the intensity of game-based training drills to official matches. Wings showed higher HIE∙min-1 in training than matches, while backs and pivots did not. Lastly, measures of position, distance, and mean speed from the investigated LPS can be used confidently in time-motion analyses for indoor team sports, provided that positioning between field of play and walls/corners and anchor nodes are appropriate.
