Study On The Latitude Distribution Of Track And Field Elite Athletes In China Mainland

The civilization theories prevailed among people are the theories paying attention to the geographical factors. In this paper, the latitude distribution of elite athletes of track and field in China mainland has been studied in terms of the biological effects of sunlight. The China mainland is divided into seven latitude zones according to the absolute latitude value so that the larger the zone number is, the larger the distance from the Equator. The elite athletes are classified into speed-type, jump-type, strength-type and endurance-type so that the latitude distribution can be discussed in terms of exercise physiology. The latitude distribution shows that the elite athletes of speed-type or jump-type prefer to the zones of low latitude, and the elite athletes of strength-type or endurance-type prefer to the zones of high latitude.To have a general view on the distribution of Chinese athletes of track and field, China mainland was further divided into two parts: southern part (Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Fujian, Hunan, Guizhou, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Chongqing) and northern part (the rest provinces and cities in China mainland). The average number of speed-type and jump-type elite athletes in southern part was much higher than the northern part. In contrary, the average number of endurance-type athletes in southern China was less than northern China.Human skeletal muscle is composed of varying percentages of fiber types. This percent composition varies widely between muscles and among individuals. The fiber composition of some skeletal muscle could be construed as being advantageous to successful performance in selected athletic event. In addition, a study show cold tolerance can lead to transformation of skeletal muscle from fast to slow twitch. Temperature change is in accordance with the variation of solar radiation. The more solarradiation, the higher temperature a place would be. Therefore, the distribution of elite athletes of track and field in China mainland can at least partly be understood by skeletal muscle fibre type composition variation among different latitude zones.