If the aim of our athletes is optimal performance, they are only going to hit the target if they have power, the ability to pull the trigger on that power, and the ability to aim it all in the proper direction. Like in the broad jump assessment, a high jump is only powerful if it has a short contact time – if it takes an athlete a very long time to load their jump, they are wasting energy on the ground. This test also allows us to look at the athlete’s dynamic control (or balance in motion) by looking at the used area needed to complete the jumps.

This test is performed in a 2D OptoJump system. The athlete stands inside and performs three consecutive maximum-effort double-leg jumps. Power, height, contact time, and used area are all recorded.

Over time, we would like to see increased power and height of the jumps, and smaller contact times and used area (the area needed to perform the jumps). The better the athlete’s dynamic control, the smaller the used area will be.

Improvements can be made in Ground School