The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of gender on the relationship between time limit at the minimum velocity that elicits maximal oxygen consumption (TLim-vVO2max) and three swimming economy (SE) related parameters: the energy cost corresponding to vVO2max (CvVO2max), the slope of the regression line obtained from the relationship between energy expenditure (E) and corresponding velocities in a incremental test (Cslope) and the ratio obtained by the mean E value and the velocity mean value of the incremental test (Cinc). Each subject of two gender groups-11 male and 12 female swimmers-performed an incremental test for vVO2max assessment and an all-out TLim-vVO2max test. TLim-vVO2max, vVO2max, CvVO2max, Cslope and Cinc averaged, respectively, 244.6±56.5s, 1.45±0.04m/s, 15.9±2.2J.kg-1m-1, 35.0±4.8J.kg-1m-1 and 14.3±2.4J.kg-1m-1 in the male group and 248.0±60.5s, 1.33±0.04m/s, l 4.3±1.81J.kg-1m-1, 35.7±6.4J.kg-1m-1 and 11.5±1.5J.kg-1m-1 in the female group. An inverse correlation was found between TLim-vVO2 max and Cslope for the entire group (r=-0.78, p<.001) and for each gender group (r=-0.90, p<.001 and r=-0.61, p<.05, for female and male respectively), confirming that SE is a very important performance influencing factor. Complementarily, despite the relationship between energy cost and TLim-vVO2max efforts is evident in each gender, the TLim-vVO2max tests performed by the female swimmers seem to depend more on their own SE than on male swimmers.
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