New York is a separate qualifying region for the meet, guaranteeing spots for at least two boys and two girls teams each fall. There are also four at-large berths available nationally. New York will be allocated 10 individual berths — five each for boys and girls. The championship meet will be held in Portland on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008.
The incredible shrinking player: The rigors of blocking and the weight of helmets and pads may compress the spine enough to result in a temporary loss of height of up to one centimeter for some football players, a new study reports. Previous research has suggested that gravity-related compression of the spine can cause a person to lose 1 percent of their height in a normal day, with the process reversed during sleep.
In the new study, HealthDay News reported, researchers looked at 10 football players whose positions were most likely to expose them to repetitive longitudinal loading of the spine due to blocking, tackling and other maneuvers. Their average pre-game height was 176.56 centimeters, and their average post-game height was 175.81 centimeters.
"The decrease is likely due to the intermittent high-impact compressive loading of the spinal column during a football game, as well as the low-impact continuous compressive forces from equipment weight," study author Brian J. Campbell said in a prepared statement. "In a game such as football, one centimeter could mean the difference between a game-winning catch or a blocked field goal."
The study was presented this week at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine, in Indianapolis.
More kneed-to-know info: Knee injuries are the most common reason for high school sports-related surgeries, say researchers who analyzed data on nine high school sports at 100 U.S. high schools.
The sports included were football, boys and girls soccer, boys and girls basketball, baseball, wrestling, softball and girls volleyball, HealthDay News reported. The highest rates of knee injury, which accounted for 45 percent of all injuries, occurred in football, wrestling, girls soccer and girls basketball. The most common knee injuries were incomplete ligament tears, contusions, complete ligament tears, torn cartilage, fractures/dislocations, and muscle tears.
The study by the Center for Injury Research and Policy of the Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, is published in the June issue of The American Journal of Sports Medicine. The study also said illegal play was a risk factor for major knee injuries. Illegal play was a contributing factor in 5.7 percent of all knee injuries, but 20 percent of knee injuries resulting from illegal play required surgery.
