Juliana Antero-Jacquemin

Mortality of French participants in the Tour de France (1947–2012)

AIMS In the context of recent concerns regarding performance enhancing techniques and potential negative health effects of high-level physical activity, data on the long-term outcomes and causes of death in elite endurance cyclists are of particular interest. METHODS AND RESULTS Characteristics and vital status of all French participants in the Tour de France were collected for the 1947-2012 period. Causes of death were obtained from 1968. Overall and disease-specific mortalities were compared with the French male population using overall and specific standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) with their 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Among the 786 French cyclists who participated at least once between 1947 and 2012, 208 (26%) died by 1 September 2012. Neoplasms and cardiovascular diseases accounted for 61% of deaths. We observed a 41% lower mortality in French cyclists (SMR: 0.59, 95% CI: 0.51-0.68, P < 0.0001), which did not change over time (P = 0.70). It was observed for main mortality causes: for neoplasms (SMR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.42-0.72, P < 0.0001) and for cardiovascular death (SMR: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.50-0.88, P = 0.004), except mortality related to external causes (SMR: 1.06, 95% CI: 0.71-1.53, P = 0.80). CONCLUSION We observed a substantially and significantly lower mortality in participants in the Tour de France, compared with the general male population. However, our results do not allow us to assess in detail the balance between positive effects of high-level sports activity and selection of healthy elite athletes, vs. any potential deleterious effects of excessive physical exercise or alleged doping.

Marathon progress: demography, morphology and environment.

Abstract As opposed to many other track-and-field events, marathon performances still improve. We choose to better describe the reasons for such a progression. The 100 best marathon runners archived from January 1990 to December 2011 for men and from January 1996 to December 2011 for women were analysed. We determined the impact of historical, demographic, physiological, seasonal and environmental factors. Performances in marathons improve at every level of performance (deciles). In 2011, 94% of the 100 best men athletes were African runners; among women athletes they were 52%. Morphological indicators (stature, body mass and Body Mass Index (BMI)) have decreased. We show a parabolic function between BMI and running speed. The seasonal distribution has two peaks, in spring (weeks 14 to 17) and autumn (weeks 41 to 44). During both periods, the average temperature of the host cities varies close to optimal value for long distance race. African men and women runners are increasingly dominating the marathon and pushing its record, through optimal eco-physiological conditions.

Has Athletic Performance Reached its Peak

Limits to athletic performance have long been a topic of myth and debate. However, sport performance appears to have reached a state of stagnation in recent years, suggesting that the physical capabilities of humans and other athletic species, such as greyhounds and thoroughbreds, cannot progress indefinitely. Although the ultimate capabilities may be predictable, the exact path for the absolute maximal performance values remains difficult to assess and relies on technical innovations, sport regulation, and other parameters that depend on current societal and economic conditions. The aim of this literature review was to assess the possible plateau of top physical capabilities in various events and detail the historical backgrounds and sociocultural, anthropometrical, and physiological factors influencing the progress and regression of athletic performance. Time series of performances in Olympic disciplines, such as track and field and swimming events, from 1896 to 2012 reveal a major decrease in performance development. Such a saturation effect is simultaneous in greyhound, thoroughbred, and frog performances. The genetic condition, exhaustion of phenotypic pools, economic context, and the depletion of optimal morphological traits contribute to the observed limitation of physical capabilities. Present conditions prevailing, we approach absolute physical limits and endure a continued period of world record scarcity. Optional scenarios for further improvements will mostly depend on sport technology and modification competition rules.

Learning From Leaders: Life-span Trends in Olympians and Supercentenarians

Life-span trends progression has worldwide practical implications as it may affect the sustainability of modern societies. We aimed to describe the secular life-span trends of populations with a propensity to live longer—Olympians and supercentenarians—under two hypotheses: an ongoing life-span extension versus a biologic “probabilistic barrier” limiting further progression. In a study of life-span densities (total number of life durations per birth date), we analyzed 19,012 Olympians and 1,205 supercentenarians deceased between 1900 and 2013. Among most Olympians, we observed a trend toward increased life duration. This trend, however, decelerates at advanced ages leveling off with the upper values with a perennial gap between Olympians and supercentenarians during the whole observation period. Similar tendencies are observed among supercentenarians, and over the last years, a plateau attests to a stable longevity pattern among the longest-lived humans. The common trends between Olympians and supercentenarians indicate similar mortality pressures over both populations that increase with age, scenario better explained by a biologic “barrier” forecast.

Return to Sport Among French Alpine Skiers After an Anterior Cruciate Ligament Rupture Results From 1980 to 2013

Background: There is little known about return to sport and performance after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear in high-level alpine skiers. Purpose: To analyze the parameters that influence the return to sport and performance after an ACL tear in French alpine skiers from 1980 to 2013. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: The study population included 239 male and 238 female skiers who competed on the national French alpine ski team for at least 1 season between 1980 and 2013 in the speed (downhill and super-G) and technical disciplines (giant slalom and slalom). Two groups were formed: group 1 (G1) included athletes who had sustained an ACL rupture, and group 2 (G2) included athletes who had never sustained an ACL rupture. Three performance indicators were selected: International Ski Federation (FIS) points calculation, FIS ranking, and podium finishes in the World Cup, World Championships, and Olympic Games. Results: The first-decile FIS points and international FIS ranking showed that G1 skiers obtained better performance than did G2 skiers. The mean ± SD career length of G1 skiers (men, 7.9 ± 4.7 years; women, 7.1 ± 4.1 years) was longer than that of G2 skiers (men, 4.5 ± 3.3 years; women, 4.2 ± 3.5 years). In addition, 12.8% (61 of 477) of the skiers achieved at least a podium finish during their careers: 23.0% (34 of 148) in G1 and 8.3% (27 of 329) in G2. The mean age at ACL rupture was 22.6 ± 4.1 years for men and 19.9 ± 3.5 years for women. In G1, 55 podiums were achieved before ACL rupture and 176 after in all competitions. Skiers who improved their performances after ACL rupture were significantly younger (men, 22.2 ± 3.0 years; women, 18.7 ± 2.2 years; P < .0001) at the time of injury than those showing a performance deterioration after ACL rupture (men, 25.3 ± 4.2 years; women, 22.4 ± 4.0 years). All skiers who had ACL tears continued their competitive careers after the injury. Conclusion: The overall results showed that it is possible to return to preinjury or even higher levels of performance after an ACL rupture and that age is the main element that guides postsurgical recovery.

Age-Related Changes in Locomotor Performance Reveal a Similar Pattern for Caenorhabditis elegans, Mus domesticus, Canis familiaris, Equus caballus, and Homo sapiens

Locomotion is one of the major physiological functions for most animals. Previous studies have described aging mechanisms linked to locomotor performance among different species. However, the precise dynamics of these age-related changes, and their interactions with development and senescence, are largely unknown. Here, we use the same conceptual framework to describe locomotor performances in Caenorhabditis elegans, Mus domesticus, Canis familiaris, Equus caballus, and Homo sapiens. We show that locomotion is a consistent biomarker of age-related changes, with an asymmetrical pattern throughout life, regardless of the type of effort or its duration. However, there is variation (i) among species for the same mode of locomotion, (ii) within species for different modes of locomotion, and (iii) among individuals of the same species for the same mode of locomotion. Age-related patterns are modulated by genetic (such as selective breeding) as well as environmental conditions (such as temperature). However, in all cases, the intersection of the rising developmental phase and the declining senescent phase reveals neither a sharp transition nor a plateau, but a smooth transition, emphasizing a crucial moment: the age at peak performance. This transition may define a specific target for future investigations on the dynamics of such biological interactions.

Mortality in Female and Male French Olympians A 1948-2013 Cohort Study

Background: Whereas intense physical activity has been associated with deleterious effects on elite athletes’ health, in particular due to cardiovascular anomalies, long-term follow-ups have suggested lower mortality rates among elite athletes. Causes of death for French Olympic athletes and female elite athletes have not been studied. Hypothesis/Purpose: We aimed to measure overall and disease-specific mortality of French female and male Olympians compared with the French general population. We hypothesize that Olympians, both women and men, have lower mortality rates. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: French elite athletes (601 women and 1802 men) participating in summer or winter Olympic Games from 1948 to 2010 had their vital status verified by national sources and were followed until 2013. Causes of death were obtained via the National Death registry from 1968 to 2012. Overall and disease-specific mortalities of Olympians were compared with those of the French general population through standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) and 95% CIs. Olympians’ observed and expected survivals were illustrated by Kaplan-Meier curves. Results: At the endpoint of the study, 13 women and 222 men had died. Overall mortality in Olympians compared with that of their compatriots was 51% lower (SMR, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.26-0.85) among women and 49% lower (SMR, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.45-0.59) among men. Olympic athletes’ survival is significantly superior to that of the French general population (women, P = .03; men, P < .001). According to the total deaths occurring from 1968 to 2012 (12 among women, 202 among men), female Olympians died from neoplasm (50.0%), external causes (33.3%), and cardiovascular diseases (16.6%). The main causes of death among men were related to neoplasms (36.1%), cardiovascular diseases (24.3%), and external causes (14.4%). Regarding the main causes of mortality among male Olympic athletes, the SMRs were as follows: 0.55 for neoplasms (95% CI, 0.43-0.69), 0.55 for cardiovascular diseases (95% CI, 0.41-0.73), and 0.66 for external causes (95% CI, 0.44-0.94). Conclusion: French Olympians live longer than their compatriots: A lower overall mortality of similar magnitude is observed among male and female athletes compared with the general population. The main causes of death in French Olympians are neoplasms, cardiovascular diseases, and external causes.

Environment and scheduling effects on sprint and middle distance running performances.

Purpose Achievement of athletes’ performances is related to several factors including physiological, environmental and institutional cycles where physical characteristics are involved. The objective of this study is to analyse the performance achieved in professional sprint and middle-distance running events (100 m to 1500 m) depending on the organization of the annual calendar of track events and their environmental conditions. Methods From 2002 to 2008, all performances of the Top 50 international athletes in the 100 m to 1500 m races (men and women) are collected. The historical series of world records and the 10 best annual performances in these events, amounted to a total of 26,544 performances, are also included in the study. Results Two periods with a higher frequency of peak performances are observed. The first peak occurs around the 27.15th ±0.21 week (first week of July) and the second peak around 34.75th ±0.14 week (fourth week of August). The second peak tends to be the time of major international competitions (Olympic Games, World Championships, and European Championships) and could be characterized as an institutional moment. The first one, however, corresponds to an environmental optimum as measured by the narrowing of the temperature range at the highest performance around 23.25±3.26°C. Conclusions This is the first study to demonstrate that there are two performance peaks at a specific time of year (27th and 34th weeks) in sprint and middle distance. Both institutional and ecophysiological aspects contribute to performance in the 100 m to 1500 m best performances and define the contours of human possibilities. Sport institutions may take this into account in order to provide ideal conditions to improve the next records.