Associations between skeletal muscle phenotype, positional role, and on-ice performance in elite male ice hockey players.

ABSTRACT: We evaluated associations between muscle phenotype, positional role, and on-ice performance in male U20 Danish national team ice hockey players. Sixteen players (10 forwards, six defensemen) participated in a game with activity tracking. Resting thigh muscle biopsies were analyzed for metabolic enzyme activity and protein expression linked to performance. On-ice intermittent exercise capacity, repeated sprint ability, and maximal isometric knee-extensor torque were also assessed. No significant position-specific muscle phenotype characteristics were found, but forwards generally exhibited higher levels of several membrane proteins (p = 0.100-0.991). NAKα₂, NAK∑, K_ATP, ClC-1, and NHE1 showed significant correlations with total distance (r = 0.52-0.59, p = 0.016-0.046),

SUBMITTER: Vigh-Larsen JF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11551070 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature