Neuromuscular Activation Strategies of the Lower Limb During Maximal Sprinting in Youth Track and Field Athletes: Age-Related Differences and Implications for Talent Identification

Sprint performance improves throughout adolescence as a result of both structural and neuromuscular development. In particular, increases in body height, lower limb length, and muscle volume have been consistently linked to improvements in sprint performance. However, allometric scaling of force, speed, and power remain lower in adolescents compared to adults even after structural differences are accounted for, implicating neural factors as independent contributors to performance development. The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in neuromuscular activation patterns of the lower limb muscles during maximal sprinting between youth male athletes across two age groups (U19: 17–19 years; U16: 13–16 years). Eighteen athletes performed a 50 m maximal sprint. Spatiotemporal variables (running speed, step frequency, step length) were measured over 30–50 m using a high-speed camera (240 Hz) and timing gates. Electromyographic (EMG) signals were recorded simultaneously from ten lower limb muscles using wireless EMG sensors (2000 Hz): rectus femoris (RF), biceps femoris (BF), semitendinosus (ST), gluteus maximus (Gmax), gluteus medius (Gmed), vastus lateralis (VL), vastus medialis (VM), tibialis anterior (TA), gastrocnemius (GAS), and soleus (SOL). Root mean square (RMS) amplitude was calculated across four gait phases (contact, early-swing, mid-swing, late-swing) and normalised to maximal voluntary Isometric contraction (%MVIC). The U19 group demonstrated significantly greater running speed (U19: 9.49 ± 0.39 vs. U16: 8.67 ± 0.25 m·s−1, p < 0.001), step frequency (U19: 4.49 ± 0.12 vs. U16: 4.35 ± 0.16 Hz, p = 0.004), and step length (U19: 2.12 ± 0.12 vs. U16: 1.99 ± 0.06 m, p = 0.010) than U16. The overall pattern of lower limb muscle activation across the gait cycle was broadly similar between groups; however, a significant group × phase interaction was observed for RF (p = 0.003, F = 5.257, η2 = 0.247), with post hoc analysis revealing greater RF activation during early swing in U19 (p = 0.033). These findings may indicate that sprint-specific training in youth athletes is associated with not only structural but also neuromuscular differences, specifically reflecting enhanced RF recruitment during the phase-critical moment of early swing—a window in which high-threshold motor unit activation is most mechanically decisive. EMG-based assessment of hip flexor activation during maximal sprinting may provide a complementary tool, pending further validation, for talent identification and training prescription in youth track and field.