A biomechanical model of a double‐poling skier

Up till now, very little has been done in the field of cross-country skiing biomechanics using numerical techniques. This paper presents a biomechanical model of a double-poling skier that is created with the use of AnyBody, a general body-modeling and optimization software. As an aid to validate the model, a physical experiment is performed. An elite female skier is video-taped while using a double-poling ergometer. This experiment provides measurements of movement and poling power. Simulation results agree well with an experiment concerning muscle activation sequences (Nilsson and Holmberg, 2000). However, when simulation results and measured poling power are compared, agreement is not good. This means that further work on the biomechanical model is needed before it can be validated as a good representation of reality. Still, the method shows potential, and the present model could be used for initial studies of the double-poling technique. When the model is validated, it could provide a very useful tool in the quest for gold medals and perhaps, more importantly, for the prevention of injuries.