Landlocked and Loving it? Acute and Chronic Injuries and Illnesses at the World Rowing Indoor Championships

Objectives: 1) Evaluate the period prevalence proportion of injuries and illnesses in rowers attending the 2023 World Rowing Indoor Championships (WRICH) , 2) determine any associations of age, gender, and training characteristics with training volume-adjusted injury count and odds of experiencing illness.

Design: Cross-sectional survey and recorded medical encounters at the Championships.

Methods: Eligible participants (>18 years, communicate in English, competed in WRICH, n=896) were asked to report injury (tissue damage/derangement of normal physical function due to sport) and illness (complaint/disorder not related to injury) occurrence in the four weeks prior to (pre-existing) and during the Championships. Linear and logistic regressions models were used to evaluate associations between age, gender, training characteristics and injury and illness counts.

Results: 180 competitors from 35 countries (median age 50.5, 43% women) completed the survey. 78 (44%) and 90 (50%) reported pre-existing injuries and illnesses respectively (acute:overuse ratio=1:7.1 (26 acute:184 overuse, 210 total injuries). Increased training volume-adjusted injury count was weakly associated with slower 2000m ergometer times and use of free weights in men (p=0.21), and more years of rowing in women (p=0.15). Slower 2000m ergometer season-best times, use of free weights (OR=2.52, 95% CI: 0.88 – 7.26) in men and longer ergometer training sessions (OR=1.02, 95% CI: 0.995 – 1.041) in women were associated with increased odds of illness.

Conclusion: Injury and illness period prevalence proportion were relatively high in the weeks leading up to the competition and associated with training characteristics that varied by gender. Prevention strategies should be prioritised by athletes, coaches and entourage ahead of major competitions.