Medically diagnosed illness and injuries in athletes.

In support of findings from Heather et al. (2021), medically diagnosed illness and injuries were high in female World Cup and World Championship mountain bikers. Sub-group analysis of riders who had placed in the top 10 (representing some of the best riders in the world) highlighted issues specific to each discipline XCO and DH.

At the highest level, diagnosed disordered eating and RED-S was only seen in XCO riders. This is consistent with what is well documented in the literature about endurance athletes and further, ‘lean sport’ athletes, having higher training volumes and being under additional pressure to maintain a lower body weight (Quah et al.,2009; Torstveit & Sundgot-Borgen, 2005).

Riding with Flow: Menstrual Health in World Cup and World Championship Mountain Bikers.

References:

Heather, A., Thorpe, H., Ogilvie, M., Sims, S., Beable, S., Milsom, S., . . . Hamilton, B. (2021). Biological and socio-cultural factors have the potential to Influence the health and performance of elite female athletes: A cross sectional survey of 219 elite female athletes in Aotearoa New Zealand. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 3. doi:10.3389/fspor.2021.601420

Quah, Y. V., Poh, B. K., Noor, M. I., & Ng, L. O. (2009). The female athlete triad among elite Malaysian athletes: Prevalence and associated factors. Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 18(2), 200-208.

Torstveit, M. K., & Sundgot-Borgen, J. (2005b). Participation in leanness sports but not training volume is associated with menstrual dysfunction: A national survey of 1276 elite athletes and controls. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 39(3), 141-147.