Associations Between Physiological Determinants and GNSS-Derived Technical Characteristics in Cross-Country Roller Skiing

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

This study aimed to examine how physiological determinants are associated with skiing technique and race performance in cross-country roller skiing by integrating motion data obtained via a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) with laboratory-based physiological assessments. Nineteen well-trained male skiers completed a 10 km roller ski race, during which skiing velocity, cycle length, cycle time, and sub-technique usage were measured using GNSS. Whole-body and upper-body endurance and power were evaluated on the treadmill and ski ergometer. Time to exhaustion during the double poling test (r = −0.84, p < 0.01) and VO2max from the pole walk and run test (r = −0.72, p < 0.01) were the strongest predictors of race performance, and both were significantly associated with skiing velocity (VO2max: r = 0.79, p < 0.01; TTE-DPT: r = 0.81, p < 0.01) and cycle length (VO2max: r = 0.58, p < 0.01; TTE-DPT: r = 0.47, p < 0.05) in the most frequently used technique. These findings suggest that the development of both whole-body and upper-body endurance plays a crucial role in improving technical efficiency and race performances.