INTRODUCTION: Change of direction (COD) ability is a key predictor of athletic performance in badminton players [1], and stiffness may be one of the important factors affecting COD ability in badminton players [2-3]. The objective of this study was to investigate whether stiffness characteristics could influence the COD performance. METHODS: A total of 15 badminton masters and first-class athletes (9 males: 19.8 ± 2.5 yr, 180.0 ± 7.0 cm, 71.0 ± 9.9 kg; 6 females: 20.2 ± 1.2 yr, 169.0 ± 7.0 cm, 60.0 ± 7.5 kg) were recruited in the study. A dynamic weight-bearing vest warm-up ((10% of body weight)) has been proved to improve COD ability. Prior to the warm-up (T0) , stiffness of soleus, gastrocnemius medialis (GM), and Achilles tendon (AT) for both sides were evaluated by MyotonPRO (MyotonPRO, Myoton AS, Tallinn, Estonia); vertical stiffness (Kvert) was measured by a force plate (Kistler Instruments, Winterthur, Switzerland) for both legs; COD ability was assessed by the badminton half-court agility test [6]. These variables were repeated measured at T0, 0-6 min following the warm-up (T1), 7-12 min following the warm-up (T2) and 13-18 min following the warm-up (T3). One-way repeated measures ANOVA and covariance analysis were used for data analysis. RESULTS: There was a significant interaction effect in time for athletes COD ability at T1, T2 and T3 compared to T0 (F=13.948, P<0.001, n2p =0.499). Bonferroni post hoc test showed that COD ability at T1 (P =0.018), T2 (P=0.010) and T3 (P =0.004) were significantly improved compared to it at T0. Right AT stiffness measured at T3 was significantly increased compared to those at T0 (P=0.024) and T1 (P=0.039). Compared to left soles stiffness at T1, it was significantly increased at T 2 (P=0.047). Right GM stiffness at T3 was significantly increased compared to it at T2 (P=0.049). The analysis of covariance discovered that right AT stiffness (P=0.081), left soleus stiffness (P=0.531) had an effect on COD ability improvement. CONCLUSION: The increased stiffness of the right AT and left soleus muscle following a dynamic weight-bearing vest warm-up may be one of the mechanisms leading to the improved COD ability in badminton players.
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