Race
Athletes come from a number of
different racial types. These racial types are based on convention with
relation to ethnicity, geography, skin colour and body form. Examples are West
African, East African, Caucasian and Asian. Some racial types are known to
perform extremely well in certain sports
West African origin
West Africa is the western region of
Africa, Ivory coast, Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana and Gambia are some of the states
that are in the west of Africa. Many West Africans were transported to the
Caribbean and North America as a result of the slave trade.
“Blacks
who trace their ancestry to West Africa, including African Americans, hold more
than 95 percent of the top times in sprinting.” This shows that athletes from a
West African descent are better sprinters than other races.
Examples of athletes of West African
origin is Chelsea striker Didier Drogba who was born in the Ivory coast but
moved to France at the age of five. Didier Drogba is Black and has a tall well
muscled frame. He is also very strong, powerful and fast. Usian Bolt is the
fastest man in the world and holds the world records for 100 and 200 meters
sprints. Usian Bolt is Jamaican so it is considered that his ancestors were
West African.
East African origin
East Africa comprises the eastern-most
region of Africa and includes nations such as Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and
Ethiopia. The unique geography and apparent suitability for farming made East
Africa an appealing target for European colonisation in the nineteenth century.
East Africa includes countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania; these
countries have large areas at high altitude where many of the world’s top
endurance athletes originate
Former world 800-metre champion, Wilson
Kipketer, is of East African origin. He was born in Kenya in 1972, but later
applied for Danish nationality after studying there for many years.
“At the Seoul Olympics in 1988, Kenya shocked
the running world when it's top male runners won the 800m, 1500m and 5,000
meters, plus the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Based on population percentages alone,
the likelihood of such a performance is one in 1.6 billion. The Kalenjins of
the Great Rift Valley adjacent to Lake Victoria, a tribe of half a million
people, win 40 percent of top international distance running honors - and three
times as many distance medals as athletes from any other nation in the world.” This shows that East
Africans especially Kenyans are the best at long distance running and have a
big advantage over other races.
Caucasian
Caucasian is often used to refer to
people whose ancestry came from Europe, the Middle East and some regions of
Asia. The physical characteristics of Caucasian athletes tend to be very light
to brown skin pigmentations and a variety of physical forms. The Caucasian race
is the majority in North America and Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
“Whites are virtually absent from the top ranks
of sprinting; though whites have traditionally done well in the longer
endurance races, particularly the marathon, their ranks have thinned in recent
years” This shows Caucasians are not good at sprinting events but have been
successful in marathons a few years back.
Former seven-time Formula 1 world
champion Michael Schumacher is of Caucasian origin. He was born in Germany in
1969 and went on to become the most successful Formula 1 driver to date. Paula
Radcliffe is a marathon runner from the UK.
Asian
Asian refers to people from Asia. The
meaning varies by country and person. In the USA Asian refers to people of East
Asian e.g. China and Japan or South-east Asian origin e.g. Thailand and
Vietnam. In the UK Asian generally refers to South Asia e.g. India and Pakistan.
Former women’s Olympic 100-metre
breaststroke gold medallist Luo Xuejuan was born in Hangzhou, China, in 1984
and set a new Olympic record during her 2004 Olympic triumph. Chinese
gymnastics are very small and thin which makes them very flexible and able to
perform moves that others can’t do.
Physical
differences
Over time the populations became geographically separated from one
another and evolved to differ in physical appearance. West African, East
African, Caucasian and Asian races all display many physical differences to
suit the environment they live in. West and East Africans tend to have black
skin but West Africans tend to be more muscular and East Africans have a
narrower skeletal frame and a leaner muscle structure. West and East Africans
also tend to have dark hair. Caucasian athletes tend to have a light skin
colour, a lighter hair colour and a fairly muscular frame. Asian athletes tend
to have black hair, darker skin but not black and a smaller physical frame than
Caucasians.
Muscle fibre types
East Africans are born with higher
number of slow twitch fibres, this could be because they live at high altitude.
Their muscle fibres are 70– 75 per cent slow-twitch. , evolution has
granted East African athletes a distinct physiological advantage when it comes
to competing in endurance events as, their cardiovascular systems are able to
function efficiently using air that has a lower oxygen pressure because their ancestors
ancestry’s living at 2000 – 3000 meters altitude. West Africans ancestors lived
at a low intensity which means they have fewer slow twitch fibres but a higher
level of fast twitch fibres which are ideal for explosive events such as
sprinting.
“For years it was axiomatic that muscles have
two types of fibers - white, or fast-twitch, which were thought to be adapted
for power movements, such as leaping or sprinting; and red, or slow-twitch,
which were adapted for endurance. Now we know the model is more complicated.
There are in fact two different types of fast-twitch fibers, one more
metabolically efficient. Whites on average have a higher percentage of slow-twitch
fibers than West African blacks who generally have more of both types of
fast-twitch fibers.” This shows that West Africans have more fast twitch fibres
than Caucasians who have a higher number of slow twitch fibres.
Body composition and Body type
Body composition is often discussed in
terms of somatotypes. There are three types of somatotypes endomorph, mesomorph
and ectomorph. East African athletes tend to be ectomorphs. So they are
normally short in stature but with long slender limbs this makes them perfect
for endurance events such as distance running. West Africans tend to be
mesomorphs. So normally tall in stature with very muscular limbs and torso,
making them perfect for explosive events such as sprinting. Caucasians tend to fall in between ectomorph and mesomorph. They
have upper-body strength, making them suitable for events such as weightlifting
and field events. Asians tend to be similar to Caucasians in terms of body
composition, only smaller. Their more ectomorphic build allows them to excel in
events where flexibility is key, such as springboard diving and gymnastics.
West Africans tend to be squat and muscular whereas East Africans tend to be
tall and slender. Caucasians, on the other hand, tend to be a mixture depending
on where the particular Caucasian is descended from.
“Over the years there have been more than two
hundred studies comparing the body composition of athletes, with the work of
British physician James M. Tanner the most famous. His The Physique of the Olympic Athlete,
published in 1960 after the Rome Olympics, found an ideal body for each sport,
although the study noted considerable overlap in types - a classic bell curve.
Sprinters were the most muscular. Beginning at 400 meters on up to the
marathon, athletes competing in these events were progressively less muscular
in the upper body. Long-distance runners were generally small, short-legged,
narrow-shouldered, and ectomorphic, or lacking in muscle.” This shows sprinters
are more muscular than athletes you race 400 meters and upwards. It shows that
long distance runners were smaller and had shorter legs and lacked muscle.
Lung capacity and haemoglobin levels
Athletes of West African ancestry tend
to have small and efficient lungs in comparison with East Africans who have
much larger lungs. Kenyan success in endurance running probably has something
to do with the fact that many Kenyan runners come from a high-altitude region.
However, Kenyans from low altitudes tend not to do well in the classic
long-distance events, so it is not necessarily about being Kenyan or
originating from East African that contributes to success in endurance events.
It seems to be more about living or having genetic ancestry in high altitude
areas. Athletes from higher altitudes tend to have increased levels of
haemoglobin. This is not the case for West African athletes and most Caucasian
athletes, although Asian athletes from mountainous regions of China, Japan and
Korea do so. It shows this in their increasing success in endurance-based events.
“Scientists are definitive in their findings
that athletes of West African ancestry are the most anaerobically efficient
athletes, East African are the fittest aerobically, and whites fall in the
middle.” This shows that scientists have researched and found out that athletes
of West African ancestry are the most anaerobically efficient athletes which
mean they will be better at sports like sprinting. They found out East African
are the fittest aerobically which means they are better at long distance running.
Caucasians fall in the middle so they are in between so they are a god at both
but not as good at it as East Africans or West Africans.
Effects
Heat tolerance Cold tolerance
Heat retention is facilitated by having
a short and muscular frame. This is the case in many northern European and
north Asian regions, where the climate is normally cool. If you evolved in East
Africa, where the environment is hot, then heat loss is facilitated by being
long and lean or ectomorphic.
Sprinting ability
All the sprinters who featured in the
100m final at the Athens Olympics in 2004 can trace their ancestry to West
Africa. The current Kenyan 100m record stands at 10.28 seconds which is nothing
compared to the top sprinters. Most of the world record holders in the 100m
event are of West African origin but they tend to be West African and American
mixed. Successful sprinters all trained in the USA, Canada, the UK or the
Caribbean. If you look at the West African countries where these successful
sprinters ancestors are from which include Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana none
have them have ever produced any world records. Alan Wells who is a Caucasian won
the 100m Olympic title in 1980 and Asian countries like China and Japan are
also producing talented sprinters so the fact that most of the world record
holders in the 100m event are of West African origin could change in the
future.
High-altitude tolerance
The world record holders in the 100m event are of West African
origin may change in the future. Only time will tell greater concentrations of
haemoglobin in their blood. This allows these individuals to deliver a larger
amount of oxygen to tissue under low oxygen pressure which means at altitude.
At altitude it is also believed athletes will develop greater aerobic capacity
which makes them excel at endurance events.
“Scientists are definitive in their findings that athletes of West
African ancestry are the most anaerobically efficient athletes, East African
are the fittest aerobically, and whites fall in the middle.” This shows that scientists have researched and found out that
athletes of West African ancestry are the most anaerobically efficient athletes
which mean they will be better at sports like sprinting. They found out East
African are the fittest aerobically which means they are better at long
distance running. Caucasians fall in the middle so they are in between so they
are a god at both but not as good at it as East Africans or West Africans.
“Over the years there have been more than two hundred studies comparing
the body composition of athletes, with the work of British physician James M.
Tanner the most famous. His The
Physique of the Olympic Athlete, published in 1960 after the Rome Olympics,
found an ideal body for each sport, although the study noted considerable
overlap in types - a classic bell curve. Sprinters were the most muscular.
Beginning at 400 meters on up to the marathon, athletes competing in these
events were progressively less muscular in the upper body. Long-distance
runners were generally small, short-legged, narrow-shouldered, and ectomorphic,
or lacking in muscle.” This shows sprinters are
more muscular than athletes you race 400 meters and upwards. It shows that long
distance runners were smaller and had shorter legs and lacked muscle.
“For years it was axiomatic that muscles have two types of fibers -
white, or fast-twitch, which were thought to be adapted for power movements,
such as leaping or sprinting; and red, or slow-twitch, which were adapted for
endurance. Now we know the model is more complicated. There are in fact two
different types of fast-twitch fibers, one more metabolically efficient. Whites
on average have a higher percentage of slow-twitch fibers than West African
blacks who generally have more of both types of fast-twitch fibers.” This shows that West Africans have more fast twitch fibres than
Caucasians who have a higher number of slow twitch fibres.
“Whites are virtually absent from the top ranks of sprinting; though
whites have traditionally done well in the longer endurance races, particularly
the marathon, their ranks have thinned in recent years” This shows Caucasians are not good at sprinting events but have been
successful in marathons a few years back.
“At the Seoul Olympics in 1988, Kenya shocked the running world when
it's top male runners won the 800m, 1500m and 5,000 meters, plus the
3,000-meter steeplechase. Based on population percentages alone, the likelihood
of such a performance is one in 1.6 billion. The Kalenjins of the Great Rift
Valley adjacent to Lake Victoria, a tribe of half a million people, win 40
percent of top international distance running honors - and three times as many
distance medals as athletes from any other nation in the world.” This shows that East Africans especially Kenyans are the best at long
distance running and have a big advantage over other races.
“Noakes's colleague, Bengt Saltin, head of the Muscle
Research Institute in Denmark, has come to the conclusion that certain
population groups, including Northern Europeans, who are notable endurance
runners and cross-country skiers, may have superior fatigue resistance encoded
in their genes. He has found that Scandinavian distance runners, Kenyans, and
South African blacks all have consistently lower blood-lactate levels and perform
more efficiently than athletes from other regions, the likely result of their
having evolved in mountainous regions. Population genetics - ancestry - is the
key determinant.” This shows
that Scandinavian, Kenyans and South African distanced runners all have a low
blood lactate level and perform better than athletes from other regions. They
are good distance runners because of their ancestors were born in the mountains
and now they have to evolve in the mountain regions.
“Saltin brought several groups of Kenyans to the Karolinska
labs in Sweden, where he was then working. Muscle-fiber distribution was
similar for the Kenyans and Swedes. But biopsies of the quadricep muscles in
the thighs indicated that the Kenyans had more blood-carrying capillaries
surrounding the muscle fibers and more mitochondria within the fibers. That's
important because mitochondria act a little like power stations, processing the
glucose with oxygen brought in by breathing into energy.” This shows that Kenyans have more blood carrying
capillaries surrounding the muscle fibres and more mitochondria within their
fibres in their quadriceps then Swedes. However this research could be
unreliable because the Kenyan could be a professional trained athlete which will
mean he will have more blood carrying capillaries and more mitochondria.
“The
Kenyans also showed little ammonia accumulation in their muscles from protein
combustion, and less lactic-acid buildup. They have more of the muscle enzymes
that burn fat, and their glycogen reserves are not burned as quickly, which
improves endurance.” This shows that Kenyans have less lactic acid
build up then the Swedes. It also shows that they have more muscle enzymes
which help them burn of fat. They also have glycogen that are not burned out as
quickly as the Swedes which means they are superior in endurance.
“Most
impressively, they are able to take months off from regular training and then
regain their old form quickly. When they do train, more than half of their
total mileage occurs at heart rates of 90 percent of maximum, far higher than
the rate for Europeans or Americans. In general, Saltin reported a 5 to 15
percent greater running economy at far less mileage, but at a higher intensity.
Saltin has privately suggested that Kenyans appear to be innately efficient,
durable, and fast - with the most perfect aerobic potential measured so far on earth.” This shows
Kenyans can take months off from training and come back into it very quickly
and get back to their form. It also shows when they do train more than half of
their total mileage occurs at hearts rates of 90 percent of their maximum which
is far higher than Americans or Europeans.
Although
there is no one genetically consistent African population, the environment
appears to have resulted in some characteristics shared across populations.
Bouchard is persuaded that a large fraction of both West and East African blacks enjoy
biological advantages for power or sprint events and endurance activities,
respectively. This shows that the environment is the result on certain
characteristics.
"West
Africans have more of the key anaerobic enzymes in their skeletal muscle, those
enzymes being responsible for regenerating the energy in the muscle cell
through anaerobic pathways," This shows West Africans have more key
anaerobic enzymes in their skeletal muscles which are responsible for
regenerating the energy in the muscle cell through anaerobic pathways.
“East Africans, on the other hand, seem to
have more ability to mobilize the energy stored in adipose tissue in other body
depots and to use that energy for prolonged periods of exercise.” This shows
that East Africans can mobilize the energy stored in adipose tissue in other
body depots and to use the energy for prolonged periods of time.
“The female skeleton is on average smaller and
lighter than a male skeleton. Having a smaller skeleton helps woman out in
different sports. Their smaller, lighter and shorter bones are helpful in
sports such as gymnastics because you need to have good balance, flexibility
and agility” This shows females have smaller and lighter skeleton then
males do. It shows that woman can benefit from having a smaller skeleton
because their smaller, lighter and have shorter bones which can help them. An
example of this is in gymnastics where woman are superior to men because they
have a smaller skeleton.
“Females having more
body fat is an advantage in sports such as long distance swimming outdoors
because of increase buoyancy and heat insulation so they stay warmer than males
for longer.” This shows females have more body fat than males and that it
is an advantage in long distance sports like swimming outdoors. This is because
of the increased bouncy and heat insulation so they stay warmer than males for
longer. The increased bouncy means woman’s swimming times are not that far back
from males.
“A raised level of
body fat increases the amount of work necessary to support and propel the body
effectively and efficiently. So increased body fat has more disadvantages in
endurance exercises because they have to carry more weight.” This shows a
raised level of body fat increases the amount of work necessary to support and
propel the body effectively and efficiently. This means woman have a
disadvantage at endurance sports because they carry more weight.
“Males have larger levels of testosterone
which allows them to build skeletal muscle mass more easily and in greater
quantities.” This shows males have a larger level of testosterone which
allows them to build skeletal muscle mass more easily and in greater
quantities. A sport that this is shown in is inn shot put because a lot of
strength is needed. “23.12 is the world
record by Randy Barnes (male) 22.63 is the world record by Natalya Lisovskaya
(female)” This shows that males are stringer in sports that need
strength because of their larger levels of testosterone.
“The reliance on a lower sweat output allows
females greater protection from dehydration during exercise at higher
temperatures. Their relatively large surface area to mass ratio means females
have a greater surface area exposed to the environment.” This shows that women
have a lower sweat output than males which means they have greater protection
from dehydration during exercise at higher temperatures. So woman should do
well when performing in high temperatures.
“Women have smaller
hearts than men because their body is smaller. A smaller heart means smaller
cardiac output, smaller blood volume and a faster resting heart rate this will affect
their stamina so it will effect endurance events because they have less oxygen
going to the working muscles.” This shows that woman have smaller hearts
than men because their body is smaller. This can have an effect on their
stamina as they have less oxygen going to the working muscles. Sports that need
a lot of stamina are marathons. “2h15:25 was Paula Radcliffe's time which is
the world record for women marathon runners. 2h03:38 was Patrick Makau’s time
which is the world record for men marathon runners” This shows that the
time of the male is better than a females which shows that woman’s smaller hearts
do affect their performance.
“Short-term high
intensity exercises that involve anaerobic power are different between men and
women. Male athletes have a far greater capacity for anaerobic power. This is
because of their increased body composition, muscular strength, neuro-muscular
factors and these are fed by a ready supply of ATP.” This shows that males have a greater capacity
anaerobic power than females, this is because of their increased body
composition, muscular strength neuro-muscular factors and these are fed by a
ready supply of ATP.
“Aerobic capacity is
particularly important to endurance athletes and an increased aerobic capacity
will eventually lead to an increase in VO2 maximum. Females have lower natural
haemoglobin counts, which mean the oxygen in their blood is less than those of
males.” This shows that Females have lower natural haemoglobin counts,
which mean the oxygen in their blood is less than those of males.
“Trained females are
successful in certain endurance based events. The fact that females carry more
fat tissue than males means for trained athletes that there is an additional
fuel supply on hand in greater quantities than in males. This will ultimately
be of benefit in endurance based events.” This shows that females carry
more fat tissue than males which means for trained athletes there is an
additional fuel supply which can mean greater gains than males. This is
beneficial to endurance based events.
