Abstract
The purpose of this study was to measure the jumping ability and lower limb muscle strength of collegiate competitive swimmers, to investigate the characteristics of their lower limbs with respect to competitive performance and specialized distance, and to clarify the relationship between these abilities and start performance. Eighteen male university swimmers participated in this study. For the lower limbs, squat jump （SJ）, countermovement jump （CMJ）, rebound jump, and squat one-repetition maximum （SQ1RM） were measured. For the start, 10 m times were measured under both kickstart and single-leg start conditions. Competitive performance was assessed using World Aquatics points （WA points）. In addition to correlation analyses among each measured variable, two groups were compared based on the median of their WA points, and a comparative analysis of specialized distance was conducted between the Sprint and Mid-Long groups. The results showed that the Sprint group had a significantly higher SQ1RM than the Mid-Long group, and there was a negative correlation between long-course WA points and SQ1RM. Furthermore, the kick start showed significant negative correlations with SQ1RM, CMJ, and SJ, whereas the single-leg start was significantly and negatively correlated only with SQ1RM. These findings suggest that distinct characteristics of lower limb muscle strength exist depending on competitive performance and specialized distance, and that lower limb muscle strength is involved in the front leg portion of the kick start.
