Study of short-term visual memory of athletes in cyclic sports, martial arts and esports

Background and Study Aim.  To carry out a comparative analysis of indicators of short-term visual memory in athletes of cyclic sports (short track), martial arts (karate, taekwondo) and esports (CS:GO). Material and Methods. The study involved athletes of percussion martial arts (n=13, age 18.8±0.52, experienced athletes), elite players of semi-professional CS:GO teams (n=10, age 19.2±0.50), short track speed skaters (n=12, age 19.1±0.25, experienced athletes). Short-term visual memory was determined using a special program for tablet computers running iOS. Results. Certain trends have been established regarding the characteristics of the state of the body of elite athletes in martial arts, short track and esports in terms of averaged indicators. In terms of the short-term visual memory coefficient and the average percentage of errors, martial arts athletes showed the best result, and short trackers showed the worst result. The shortest average test duration was recorded for short trackers. At certain stages of the test, they dominated athletes of other specializations in terms of reaction time. However, the trend towards faster response was associated with a decrease in the accuracy of the selection, that is, a greater percentage of errors. Cyberathletes and martial arts athletes were characterized by better adaptive abilities than short track athletes. Conclusions. The specificity of sports activities of cyberathletes determined the best results of the most difficult stage of the test both in terms of speed and accuracy. This criterion can be recommended for esports selection and prediction. The control of the cognitive functions of athletes is expedient in the course of monitoring their physical condition and is a promising direction for predicting the reliability and success of competitive activity.