Sport Science

Analysis of the Study on Physiological Distinctions between Elite and Non-Elite Fencers

November 01, 2025

General Information

Authors: B. Hekiert, A. Prokopczyk, J. O’Driscoll, P. Guzik
Institutions: Adam Mickiewicz University (Poland), University of Leicester (UK), Poznań University of Medical Sciences
Publication: Life 2025, 15, 1622
Date: October 2025

Context and Objectives

The study starts with the premise that fencing is an Olympic combat sport that requires an exceptional combination of technical skills, tactical decisions, and physical conditioning, featuring unique asymmetrical movements and an intermittent activity profile.

Research Objectives:

To compare elite and non-elite fencers on:

Endurance capacity and heart rate responses

Explosive power

Explosive acceleration

Relative lean mass (body composition)

To examine the relationship between competitive experience and physiological profiles

Operational Methodology

Participants

Study conducted on 49 Polish male fencers

Inclusion criteria:

  • Active members of the Polish National Team
  • Medical certification for high-intensity exercise
  • Informed consent

Exclusion criteria:

  • Acute injuries or illnesses
  • Use of medications influencing cardiovascular response
  • Lack of consent

Group division:

  • Elite (ELI): n=16, positions 1-25 in the national ranking (33% of the sample)
  • Non-Elite (NON): n=33, positions 26-102 in the national ranking

Period: Summer 2022, during the national training camp preparation period

Test Protocols

1. Fencing Specific Endurance Test (FET)

Test characteristics:

  • Modification of the original test by Weichenberger et al. (2012)
  • Type: Multi-Stage Fitness Test
  • Performed on a 3.5-meter strip
  • Replicates typical movements: advances, retreats, lunges

Progressive protocol:

  • Initial speed: 3 km/h
  • Increments: 1 km/h every 3 minutes
  • Maximum duration: 15 minutes
  • Acoustic signal system to regulate pace
  • Continuation until voluntary exhaustion or reaching the 15-minute limit

Recorded parameters:

  • Total duration completed
  • Continuous heart rate via chest strap (Polar Team Pro)

2. Countermovement Jump (CMJ)

Protocol:

  • 4 consecutive vertical jumps with natural arm swing
  • Starting position: standing, feet hip-width apart
  • Movement: controlled downward contraction followed by maximal upward propulsion
  • No pause between jumps

Measurement system: OptoGait (Microgate, Bolzano, Italy)

Measured parameters:

  • C_time [s]: contact time with the ground
  • F_time [s]: flight time
  • Power [W/kg]: power calculated using the formula: Power = (g²·F_time·(F_time + C_time))/(4·C_time)
  • Peak Power: highest value from the 4 CMJs
  • Mean Power: average power of the 4 CMJs
  • Rhythm [jumps/s]: rhythm expressed in jumps per second
  • RSI [m/s]: Reactive Strength Index = (g·F_time²)/(8·C_time)

3. 5-meter Sprint Test

Protocol:

  • Starting position: en garde (staggered feet, knees bent, armed arm ready)
  • Distance: 5 meters
  • Detection: electronic timing
  • Signal: acoustic whistle
  • 3 trials, best time recorded

4. Body Composition

Measurement:

  • Instrument: TANITA MC-580 S MA (segmental bioimpedance analysis)
  • Time: morning, fasting, 7:30 AM
  • Frequencies used: 6.25 kHz, 50 kHz
  • Current: 25 VA
  • Accuracy: error < 1%

Main parameter:

  • Relative lean mass: lean mass (kg) normalized to total body weight
  • Used as a practical proxy for skeletal muscle mass

5. Heart Rate (HR)

Measurement points:

  • Pre-FET HR: after 10 minutes of warm-up, before the FET
  • End-FET HR: at the end of the FET
  • HRR1: 1 minute after the end of the FET (Heart Rate Recovery)

Test Sequence

Temporal order (in a single morning session):

  1. 5-meter sprint test
  2. 1-hour break
  3. CMJ
  4. 1-hour break
  5. FET

Statistical Analysis

Methods used:

  • Shapiro-Wilk test: verification of distribution normality
  • Mann-Whitney U test: comparisons between groups for unadjusted variables
  • Quantile regression: comparisons adjusted for age and BMI
  • Spearman’s correlation (rho): associations between experience and parameters
  • ROC analysis with AUC: discriminative power of parameters
  • Youden’s index: determination of optimal cut-offs
  • Significance: p < 0.05

Main Results

Demographic Characteristics

Parameter Non-Elite (n=33) Elite (n=16) p-value
Age (years) 17.0 (15.6-18.2) 21.0 (19.2-24.9) <0.0001
Height (cm) 179.0 (174-183) 183.5 (180.3-188) 0.0019
Weight (kg) 69.0 (62.7-77.6) 79.6 (72.8-82.0) 0.0026
BMI (kg/m²) 21.4 (19.5-24.0) 23.5 (21.6-24.3) 0.0901
Experience (years) 9.0 (7.0-10.0) 13.0 (10.0-16.5) <0.0001

FET Performance and Heart Rate

Parameter Non-Elite Elite p-value
FET Duration (min) 12.4 (12.1-13.3) 15.0 (14.3-15.0) <0.0001
Pre-FET HR (bpm) 127.0 (114.5-132.5) 118.5 (110.5-125.8) 0.046
End-FET HR (bpm) 198.0 (192-208) 196.5 (191.8-201.5) 0.2625
HRR1 (bpm) 161.0 (144-169.5) 149.0 (140.5-157.8) 0.0386
RPE (Borg scale) 9.0 (9.0-10.0) 8.5 (8.0-9.0) 0.001

Key Result: 56.25% (9/16) of elites vs 6.06% (2/33) of non-elites completed the full 15 minutes (p<0.0001)

CMJ Performance (Jump)

Parameter Non-Elite Elite p-value
C_time (s) 0.40 (0.27-0.53) 0.31 (0.24-0.44) 0.0511
F_time (s) 0.56 (0.54-0.58) 0.62 (0.59-0.65) <0.0001
Peak Power (W/kg) 30.20 (27.59-38.45) 42.84 (36.40-48.17) 0.0002
Mean Power 4 CMJ (W/kg) 27.74 (25.71-33.16) 39.53 (35.39-44.54) <0.0001
Rhythm (jumps/s) 1.10 (0.92-1.24) 1.09 (0.94-1.23) 0.7087
RSI (m/s) 0.85 (0.72-1.28) 1.50 (1.07-1.73) 0.001

5-meter Sprint and Body Composition

Parameter Non-Elite Elite p-value
5m Sprint (s) 1.09 (1.06-1.13) 1.10 (1.02-1.16) 0.8895
Relative lean mass (%) 59.9 (54.9-64.6) 67.6 (65.2-71.6) 0.0004

Important Note: No significant difference in sprint, but notable difference (+7.7%) in relative lean mass

Adjusted Analysis (Quantile Regression)

Estimated Median Differences (EMD) after adjustment for age and BMI:

Parameter EMD SE p-value
FET Duration (min) +1.84 0.45 <0.0001
F_time (s) +0.05 0.02 0.0050
Peak Power (W/kg) +10.38 4.23 0.0140
Mean Power 4 CMJ (W/kg) +10.92 3.99 0.0062
Pre-FET HR (bpm) +0.39 6.87 0.9550
HRR1 (bpm) -13.34 8.04 0.0970
C_time (s) -0.11 0.08 0.1583

Interpretation: Differences in FET and CMJ remain robust even after controlling for age and BMI

Correlations with Competitive Experience

Significant Spearman correlations:

Variable Rho p-value Strength
FET Duration 0.62 <0.0001 Strong
Relative lean mass 0.55 <0.0001 Medium-Strong
F_time 0.49 0.0003 Medium-Strong
Body weight 0.48 0.0005 Medium
Height 0.44 0.0015 Medium
Mean Power 4 CMJ 0.42 0.0029 Medium
BMI 0.38 0.0067 Medium
Peak Power 0.37 0.0081 Medium
RSI 0.35 0.0139 Medium
Pre-FET HR -0.50 0.0003 Medium (Inverse)
RPE -0.39 0.0056 Medium (Inverse)

NON-significant correlations:

  • 5m Sprint: rho = 0.09, p = 0.5239
  • End-FET HR: rho = -0.26, p = 0.0694
  • HRR1: rho = -0.10, p = 0.4833

ROC Analysis – Discriminative Power

Parameters with AUC > 0.80 (excellent discrimination):

Parameter AUC p-value Optimal Cut-off (Youden) Sensitivity/Specificity
F_time (s) 0.899 <0.0001 ≥0.581 High/High
FET Duration (min) 0.878 <0.0001 ≥14.3 High/High
Mean Power 4 CMJ (W/kg) 0.860 0.0001 ≥34.93 High/High
Experience (years) 0.856 <0.0001 ≥10 High/High
Peak Power (W/kg) 0.837 0.0001 ≥32.05 High/High

Parameters with AUC 0.70-0.80 (good discrimination):

Parameter AUC p-value Optimal Cut-off
RSI (m/s) 0.793 0.0010 ≥0.85
RPE (points) 0.767 0.0026 ≤8

Parameters with poor discriminative power (AUC ≈ 0.5):

  • Relative lean mass: AUC = 0.526, p = 0.7735
  • 5m Sprint: AUC = 0.513, p = 0.8814
  • CMJ Rhythm: AUC = 0.534, p = 0.7012

Study Conclusions

Key Findings

  1. Superior endurance in elites:
    • Median difference: +1.84 minutes in FET
    • Over half of elites complete 15 minutes with residual capacity
    • Suggests the need to extend the test to 20 minutes for elites
  2. Superior explosive power in elites:
    • +10.4 W/kg peak power
    • Flight time +0.05 seconds
    • Significantly higher RSI
  3. Optimized body composition in elites:
    • +7.7% relative lean mass
    • Correlated with years of training (rho = 0.55)
  4. No difference in linear acceleration:
    • 5m Sprint similar between groups
    • Suggests that pure acceleration is not discriminatory
  5. Experience as a key factor:
    • 4 years median difference (13 vs 9 years)
    • Medium-strong correlations with physiological parameters
    • All athletes completing the 15 min have $\ge 10$ years of experience