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Alterations in core temperature during World Rugby Sevens Series tournaments in temperate and warm environments
journal contribution
posted on 2020-01-16, 09:37 authored by Lee TaylorLee Taylor, Heidi R Thornton, Nick Lumley, Christopher J. StevensPurpose: To characterize player core temperature (Tc) across two separate World Rugby Sevens Series (WRSS) tournaments in temperate and warm environments. Methods: Tc was collected in seventeen playing members of one men’s team competing at the Singapore (n = 12) and London (n = 11) WRSS tournaments. Exertional heat illness (EHI) symptoms, cooling strategy use, playing minutes and wet blub globe temperature (WBGT) were also collected. Linear mixed models and magnitude-based inferences assessed differences in Tc between all periods within-and between tournaments and were also used to assess the effect of WBGT and playing minutes on Tc. Results: Several players experienced Tc in excess of 38°C during warm-ups and 39°C during games. The highest mean Tc values were observed in the final game on all days and in Singapore Day Two, there were substantial game-on-game increases in mean Tc. These Tc responses were associated with playing minutes (effect size; ±90% CL = 0.38; ±0.20), although the effect of WBGT was trivial and unclear. Further, there were no differences in Tc between the two tournaments in the different environments. Despite high individual peak Tc values (Singapore 39.9°C; London 39.6°C); no signs/symptoms of EHI were reported, voluntary post-game cooling usage was minimal, and pre- and mid-cooling strategies were not implemented. Conclusions: During WRSS matches, peak Tc values approached thresholds associated with EHI (>40°C) and exceeded those demonstrated to reduce repeated sprint performance (>39°C). Practitioners may consider the use of compatible cooling and heat acclimation strategies to minimize Tc increase and maximize player preparedness and recovery.
Funding
Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF; Doha, Qatar)
History
School
- Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences
Published in
European Journal of Sport ScienceVolume
19Issue
4Pages
432 - 441Publisher
Taylor & FrancisVersion
- VoR (Version of Record)
Rights holder
© European College of Sport SciencePublisher statement
This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in European Journal of Sport Science on 10 October 2018, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/17461391.2018.1527949.Publication date
2018-10-10Copyright date
2018ISSN
1746-1391eISSN
1536-7290Publisher version
Language
- en