Comparison of Upper Extremity Physical Fitness Levels in Wheelchair Archery and Basketball Athletes

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between upper extremity physical fitness levels of wheelchair archery and wheelchair basketball athletes. Methods: Ten wheelchair basketball players and ten wheelchair archers, who met the inclusion criteria were included in the study. Athletes were divided into two groups according to their sports branch. Hand grip strength, shoulder flexibility, reaction time, trunk balance and upper extremity muscle strength were measured among the upper extremity physical fitness parameters. Measurements were repeated separately for both upper extremities. In addition, the demographic data of the individuals were recorded through the questionnaire. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of age, height, weight and body mass index (p>0.05). The years of disability and sports experience were significantly higher in basketball athletes, while weekly training hours were significantly higher in archery athletes (p<0.05). When the groups were compared, there was a statistically significant difference in right hand grip strength, trunk balance and all upper extremity muscle strength parameters in favor of wheelchair basketball athletes (p<0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in left hand grip strength, shoulder flexibility and reaction time of all upper extremities between the two groups (p>0.05). Conclusion: According to results, it was thought that these differences between two different sports groups are due to the different nature of the two sports branches and the fact that individuals cannot be distributed homogenously between groups according to the types of disabilities.