Heart rate variability features in elite hockey players aged 15-16 and sports selection efficiency in youth ice hockey

Aim. The aim of this study is to establish the features of heart rate variability in elite hockey players aged 15-16 depending on their career in youth ice hockey. Materials and Methods. Elite hockey players aged 15-16 participated in the study. We used standard methods of heart rate variability assessment (HRV). Career development was estimated using the rating of a player’s hockey league, where the player performed after a specialized sports school. The total sample of hockey players was divided into 2 groups (1 - “unsuccessful” players; 2 - “successful” players). Results. We revealed intergroup changes in the dynamics of HRV parameters during the first year of professional career: by the end of the competitive period, in the first group, there was a decrease in the following values: RMSSD, CV and LF (ms2); in the second group, there was an increase in HF (%) and a decrease in HR. During the second year of the professional career the second group demonstrated higher values of HR (July) and lower values of 30:15 (February) than the first group. From July to February, in the second group, we registered a decrease in CV, VLF and LF values. Conclusion. During the first year after a sports school those hockey players perform successfully in youth ice hockey, whose HR decreases by the end of the competitive period due to the increase in parasympathetic influence on heart rate. During the second year of professional career, by the end of the competitive period, there is a decrease in heart rate variability in “successful” hockey players aged 15-16 due to the decrease in the power of sympathetic and cerebral ergotropic influences. Hockey players aged 15-16 with a significant centralization in heart rate regulation succeed in sports selection only in the second year of their professional career in youth hockey.