Determinants of performance in 1,500-m runners

Our aim was to investigate the relationship between physiological variables (not previously studied) and performance in elite 1,500-m runners. We assessed eight male athletes with an average personal best time of 233.3 ± 6.9 s (110% of the world record) for the 1,500-m race. Ventilatory measurements, maximal oxygen consumption maximal vastus lateralis muscle deoxygenation (∆[deoxy(Hb+Mb)]) max via near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), and maximal velocity ( V max ) were obtained during an incremental treadmill test. During subsequent constant-speed exercise at V max , we determined the time to exhaustion (Tlim), end-exercise blood lactate concentration ([La]b max ), and ∆[deoxy(Hb+Mb)] kinetics parameters. The mean [La]b max and V max were 70.2 ± 3.9 mL kg −1 min −1 , 12.7 ± 2.4 mmol L −1 , 21.5 ± 0.5 km h −1 , respectively. at V max showed a significant negative correlation with Tlim, whereas [La]b max was positively correlated with Tlim. Race speed was found to significantly correlate with ∆[deoxy(Hb+Mb)] max (79% of maximal value obtained during a transient limb ischemia), ∆[deoxy(Hb+Mb)] slow component (22.9 ± 9.3% of total amplitude) and [La]b max at V max . [La]b max at V max was also significantly correlated with ∆[deoxy(Hb+Mb)] slow component, suggesting a greater release of oxygen from the hemoglobin due to the Bohr effect. We conclude that both the maximal capacity of muscle to extract O 2 from the blood and the end-exercise blood lactate accumulation are important predictors of best performance in 1,500-m runners.