Biomechanics: What The Body Says, Science Translates

By Amiril Muttaqien Meketar dan Muhammad Afiff Md Adnan

Part 2 of a special report on the role of biomechanics in sports explores how understanding body movements has become an important advantage for athletes and coaches in their pursuit of excellence.

Through the experiences of national archer Fatin Nurfatehah Mat Salleh and national sepak takraw head coach Ahmad Jais Baharun, the report examines how biomechanics not only supports training but also serves as a foundation for making more informed decisions in athlete performance development.

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 15 (Bernama) -- In the past, national women's compound archer Fatin Nurfatehah Mat Salleh relied more on traditional methods to assess the effectiveness of her shooting techniques. Today, the use of biomechanics allows her to identify and improve her movements based on individual physical requirements.

The 35-year-old athlete said the application of biomechanics, including electromyography (EMG) technology, in archery had opened up opportunities for more scientific and objective assessments of techniques, particularly in optimising energy use, improving movement efficiency and reducing the risk of injuries.

She said the sports science-based approach enabled archers to identify the muscle groups that needed to be activated, as well as the bone movements involved throughout the shooting process, including during the release of an arrow, to achieve more efficient and controlled techniques.

Fatin, who also holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in sports science, said understanding the body's biomechanics was crucial, given that every archer had a different bone structure, body composition and physique.

"Biomechanics is very helpful, especially in terms of posture and energy utilisation. If we use the correct technique, we do not need to exert maximum energy to perform a movement.

"Every archer is different... so the movements and methods used must be adapted to the athlete's own body," she told Bernama.

Elaborating further, Fatin said the application of biomechanics also helped reduce the risk of injuries, which commonly resulted from excessive training or repetitive muscle use.

She said that before sports science approaches were widely adopted, athletes relied more on traditional methods to determine their techniques and movements in archery, including coaches' observations, experience, the archers' own senses and video recordings.

However, through biomechanical analysis, the silver medallist in the women's compound event at the 2026 Archery World Cup in Madrid said athletes could now identify more suitable movements to reduce excessive stress on their muscles and body parts.

She said the application of biomechanics also needed to be supported by strength training to ensure athletes had sufficient strength to execute the recommended movements.

"Biomechanics must go hand in hand with strength training. If athletes do not have sufficient strength, they will also be unable to perform those movements properly. Once we know the movements that should be performed, we can improve muscle strength so that the techniques can be executed correctly and effectively," she said.

Meanwhile, national sepak takraw head coach Ahmad Jais Baharun said biomechanics in sports helped the coaching team understand the reasons behind changes in players' performance, particularly when a tekong's serving speed fell below the usual level.

Citing national first-choice tekong Mohammad Syahir Mohd Rosdi as an example, Ahmad Jais said a serving speed of around 70 to 80 kilometres (km) per hour, as detected by a radar gun, served as a benchmark, allowing any decline in speed to be identified for further assessment.

"His expected speed range, for example, for a tekong like Mohammad Syahir, is between 70 and 80 km per hour. However, if he records a speed below that range, something must be wrong. The player may feel that his technique is unchanged, but why has the speed recorded by the radar gun not reached his usual level?

"We examine this more closely from a biomechanical perspective, including his positioning, whether he makes contact with the ball too early or whether his stretch is not at its maximum, which would require better flexibility," he said.

He said the analysis allowed players to see for themselves how minor changes in technique could affect serving outcomes, making the correction process easier to understand.

He added that the use of cameras and analysis systems enabled the ball contact point and players' movements to be reviewed, with the results also available for immediate display and assessment.

Ahmad Jais said the approach gave players a clearer picture of their mistakes, particularly when repeated serving attempts produced undesirable results.

"We can call them over immediately. We practise with four or five balls and, if the serve gets caught in the net, we then examine the player's body posture to determine whether contact with the ball was too early or too late," he said.

However, he said the technology could not be used in every training session due to the limited number of biomechanics officers, who also provide services to other sports.

Ahmad Jais said the focus on applying biomechanics in national sepak takraw had been strengthened since 2023, reflecting how sports science was increasingly becoming part of efforts to refine players' performance on the court.

-- BERNAMA