Influence of Glove Type on Mobility Performance for Wheelchair Rugby Players

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of different glove types on mobility performance in a series of field tests specific to wheelchair rugby. Design: Ten international wheelchair rugby players performed three drills in each glove condition: (i) players' current glove selection, (ii) American football glove, (iii) building glove, and (iv) new prototype glove. Performance was assessed by a combination of outcomes including test times, peak velocities, and accelerations within each drill. Peak velocities and accelerations were measured using a velocometer sampling at 100 Hz. Results: A two-way analysis of variance with repeated measures revealed that participants performed statistically better for measures of acceleration and sprinting when wearing their current choice of glove compared with the new prototype glove (P < 0.05). Subjective data identified that players also favored their current gloves compared with others, although slight discrepancies were evident among classification levels concerning the building gloves. Building gloves seemed to be less suited to low-point players because of the reduced grip and protection they provided. Conclusions: It may be concluded that participants' current gloves that have been modified for the specific demands of wheelchair rugby are more effective for aspects of mobility performance than other glove types.