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Ding C, Soh KG, Sun H, Roslan S, Cao S, Zhao Y. Does mental fatigue affect performance in racket sports? A systematic review. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil 2024; 16:179. [PMID: 39187902 PMCID: PMC11345983 DOI: 10.1186/s13102-024-00963-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2024] [Accepted: 08/08/2024] [Indexed: 08/28/2024]
Abstract
Mental fatigue impairs performance across several sports domains. However, a systematic review on its effects on racket sports performance has been lacking due to the previous scarcity of studies. This review aims to provide a comprehensive review the effects of mental fatigue on racket players' performance, with a discussion of the underlying mechanisms. A thorough search was conducted across five databases, including Web of Science, PubMed, SCOPUS, SPORTDiscus (via EBSCOhost), and the Psychological and Behavioral Science Collection (via EBSCOhost). The PICOS framework established the inclusion criteria: (1) healthy racket sports players; (2) induction of mental fatigue in both field and laboratory settings; (3) comparison of mental fatigue interventions with a control group (e.g., watching a movie or reading a magazine); (4) assessment of performance outcomes, including physical performance, skilled performance, and perceptual-cognitive performance; and (5) randomized controlled trials (RCTs), non-randomized controlled trials (non-RCTs), and non-randomized non-controlled trials. Mental fatigue manipulation, subjective evaluation, and (neuro)physiological markers were synthesized to support the successful induction of mental fatigue. Performance was categorized into tennis, table tennis, badminton, and padel based on the characteristics of specific racket sports domains. Secondary outcomes, such as the rate perception of effort (RPE) and motivation, were synthesized to explain the mechanisms based on the prominent theory of the Psychobiological model of endurance performance. Six studies revealed that mental fatigue impacts stroke performance in table tennis, affecting speed, accuracy, faults, and only second-serve accuracy in tennis. The response time of psychomotor performance increased in table tennis, padel, and badminton. Meanwhile, mental fatigue increased the RPE and remained unchanged in heart rate, blood glucose, and lactate, consistent with the Psychobiological model of endurance performance. Additionally, attention is suggested as a significant underlying psychobiological factor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cong Ding
- Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia.
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of General Education Studies, Jiangsu Food and Pharmaceutical Science College, Huaian, Jiangsu, China.
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia.
| | - He Sun
- School of Physical Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, China
| | - Samsilah Roslan
- Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Shudian Cao
- Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Yue Zhao
- Department of Sport Sciences, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
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Sun H, Geok Soh K, Mohammadi A, Toumi Z. The counteractive effects of interventions addressing mental fatigue on sport-specific performance among athletes: A systematic review with a meta-analysis. J Sports Sci 2024:1-13. [PMID: 38368626 DOI: 10.1080/02640414.2024.2317633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/02/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
The deleterious consequences of mental fatigue (MF) on athletes in diverse sporting domains have been subject to extensive inquiry. However, the efficacy of interventions to counteract the effects of MF remains largely elusive. This review aims to evaluate the effects of counteractive interventions on the sport-specific performance of mentally fatigued athletes. Moreover, synthesizes the current evidence on which sports effectively counter the detrimental effects of MF with interventions, highlighting potential avenues for upcoming research. A systematic search was executed via Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and EBSCOhost, in addition to Google Scholar and references for grey literature. A meta-analysis was executed to compute effect sizes for different interventions with 13 qualified papers. Interventions include transcranial direct current stimulation, person-fit, mindfulness, glucose supplementation, caffeine mouth rinsing, and nature exposure showed potential to mitigate the detrimental effects on sport-specific performance, particularly in shooting accuracy (ES = 0.591; p = 0.001), decision-making accuracy (ES = 0.553; p = 0.006), and reaction time (ES = -0.871; p < 0.001), however, not in completion time (ES = -0.302; p = 0.182). This review underscores the unique roles of self-regulatory resources and directed attention. Nonetheless, a cautious interpretation of the findings is warranted given the paucity of investigations involving potential interventions in numerous other sports, such as volleyball, Australian football, cricket, and boxing.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Sun
- School of Physical Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan Province, China
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Alireza Mohammadi
- Faculty of Business Management, City University Malaysia, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Zakaria Toumi
- School of Psychology, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, China
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Sun H, Soh KG, Mohammadi A, Toumi Z, Zhang L, Ding C, Gao X, Tian J. Counteracting mental fatigue for athletes: a systematic review of the interventions. BMC Psychol 2024; 12:67. [PMID: 38336843 PMCID: PMC10854164 DOI: 10.1186/s40359-023-01476-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The deleterious effects of mental fatigue (MF) on athletes have been carefully studied in various sports, such as soccer, badminton, and swimming. Even though many researchers have sought ways to ameliorate the negative impact of MF, there is still a lack of studies that review the interventions used to counteract MF among athletes. This review aims to report the current evidence exploring the effects of interventions on MF and sport-specific performance, including sport-specific motor performance and perceptual-cognitive skills. Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and SPORTDicus (EBSCOhost) were combed through to find relevant publications. Additionally, the references and Google Scholar were searched for any grey literature. For the current review, we included only randomized controlled trials that involved athletes, a primary task to induce MF, interventions to counter MF with comparable protocols, and the outcomes of sport-specific motor performance and perceptual-cognitive skill. The selection criteria resulted in the inclusion of 10 articles. The manipulations of autonomous self-control exertion, person-fit, nature exposure, mindfulness, and transactional direct current stimulation showed that positive interventions counteract MF and improve sport-specific performance in different domains, including strength, speed, skill, stamina, and perceptual-cognitive skills. The selected interventions could significantly counteract MF and improve subsequent sport-specific performance. Moreover, self-regulation and attention resources showed the importance of the potential mechanisms behind the relevant interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Sun
- School of Physical Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, China
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Alireza Mohammadi
- Faculty of Business Management, City University Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Zakaria Toumi
- School of Psychology, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, China
| | - Lingling Zhang
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
- The National Football Academy, Shandong Sport University, Jinan, China
| | - Cong Ding
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Xiaojuan Gao
- School of Physical Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, China
| | - Jian Tian
- School of Physical Education, Henan University, Kaifeng, China.
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Yuan R, Sun H, Soh KG, Mohammadi A, Toumi Z, Zhang Z. The effects of mental fatigue on sport-specific motor performance among team sport athletes: A systematic scoping review. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1143618. [PMID: 37113120 PMCID: PMC10128192 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1143618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The psychobiological state known as mental fatigue (MF) is by engaging in mentally taxing activities for an extended period, which is typically found in team sports, of the high cognitive demand and unpredictable environment. It increases the perception of effort and influences executive functions, impairing sport-specific performance in athletes. However, the consequences of MF on sport-specific motor performance (SSMP) among athletes in team sports remain unclear. Objective This scoping review seeks to find and map research publications that investigate the effect of MF on SSMP in team sports. Methods Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed were searched as the main databases, and CENTRAL, Psychology, and Behavioral Sciences Collection, SPORTDicus obtained from EBSCOhost, as well as gray literature was searched for relevant literature and Google Scholar. Cognitive tasks before the SSMP exam are the focus of the selected literature on mental exhaustion. Only experiments testing mental and non-mental exhaustion were chosen. Results Twelve studies fulfill the requirement of selection criteria. SSMP in team sports, including soccer, basketball, cricket, and Australian football mainly is examined as physical and technical performance. More specifically, MF significantly influenced physical performance measured as intermittent endurance and total distance (P < 0.05), while data was inclusive when assess in an ecological setting (e.g., small-sided game) (P > 0.05). Technical performance was mainly measured as ball loss, errors in passing and shooting, interception, and successful tackle and showed a dramatic impairment (P < 0.05). The decline of physical activity is relevant with higher level PRE, while decreased technical performance is related to impaired attention resources shown as visual perceptual. Conclusion MF adversely influences SSMP in team sports. The most relevant theory for future study to examine the impacts of MF on team-sport athletes could be the psychological model of exercise and its potential extension on attention resources, rather than the traditional "catastrophe" theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Yuan
- Physical Education Department, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - He Sun
- School of Physical Education, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Alireza Mohammadi
- Faculty of Business Management, City University Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Zakaria Toumi
- Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Zhendong Zhang
- School of Physical Education, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Zhendong Zhang
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Sun H, Soh KG, Roslan S, Wazir MRWN, Mohammadi A, Ding C, Zhao Z. Nature exposure might be the intervention to improve the self-regulation and skilled performance in mentally fatigue athletes: A narrative review and conceptual framework. Front Psychol 2022; 13:941299. [PMID: 35983203 PMCID: PMC9378859 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.941299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Accepted: 07/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Due to causing inability of self-regulation (ego depletion) and executive functions such as directed attention and visual searching for relevant information (e.g., the ball location and the position of teammates), mental fatigue impairs skilled performance in various sports. On the other hand, natural scenes could improve directed attention, which may considerably benefit visual searching ability and self-regulation. However, nature exposure as a potential intervention to improve skilled performance among mentally fatigued athletes has not been discussed thoroughly. Purpose To propose the potential intervention for the impairment of skilled performance among mentally fatigued athletes and generate a framework for future studies. Methods A narrative review was applied to search broadly across disciplines, retrieving literature from several databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and EBSCOhost). Results Thirty-three works of literature including 39 experiments (mental fatigue 15; ego depletion 5; and nature exposure 19) were obtained. Finally, a conceptual framework was built regarding the effect of nature exposure intervention on skilled performance in athletes for future studies. Conclusion Three theories (the psychobiological model of exercise performance, the strength model of self-regulation, and attention restoration theory) could be potentially integrated to be a conceptual framework and explain the mechanism of preventing prior mental exertion (e.g., mental fatigue and ego depletion). Future studies could examine more on the duration of the intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Sun
- School of Physical Education Institute (Main Campus), Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Kim G. Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Samsilah Roslan
- Department of Foundation of Education, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia
| | | | - Alireza Mohammadi
- Faculty of Business Management, City University Malaysia, Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Cong Ding
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Zijian Zhao
- School of Physical Education Institute (Main Campus), Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Zijian Zhao,
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Sun H, Soh KG, Mohammadi A, Wang X, Bin Z, Zhao Z. Effects of mental fatigue on technical performance in soccer players: A systematic review with a meta-analysis. Front Public Health 2022; 10:922630. [PMID: 35937235 PMCID: PMC9354787 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.922630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Mental fatigue largely influences technical performance in soccer, including offensive and defensive skills. However, these effects on technical performance among the soccer players have not yet been aggregated to be assessed systematically. Objective The purpose of the review was to evaluate the impact of mental fatigue on soccer players' overall technical skills. Methods Drawing on Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, and EBSCOhost (CENTRAL and SPORTDicus), an in-depth search was conducted. PICOS established the eligibility criteria to select the studies as follows: (i) population-healthy soccer players; (ii) intervention-involving any mental-fatigue-prompted protocol; (iii) comparison-control conditions (active or passive without inducing mental fatigue); (iv) outcomes-technical performance (offensive and defensive skill); and (v) study design-randomized controlled trials. Results A total of eight studies were qualified for inclusion in the systematic literature review. Overall, the results indicate that mental fatigue had significant effects on technical skills, including offensive and defensive skills. Specifically, there were significant effects on errors (ES = 0.977; p < 0.001), number of tackles (ES = -0.739; p = 0.005), and the percentage of successful tackles (ES = -0.628; p = 0.022), while there were no significant effects on the number of passes (ES = 0.240; p = 0.328), the percentage of accurate passing (ES = -0.008; p = 0.985), and the number of successful passes (ES = -0.322; p = 0.217). Conclusion Overall, a significant effect of mental fatigue on the technical performance (e.g., tackles and errors) of soccer players was detected, while no significant effects on passing skills were detected. Future studies may consider investigating technical performance together with other important results (e.g., decision-making skills or internal load). Systematic Review Registration https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2022-2-0008/, Inplasy protocol 202220008.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Sun
- School of Physical Education Institute (Main Campus), Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Alireza Mohammadi
- Faculty of Business Management, City University Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Xuanji Wang
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Zuchang Bin
- Faculty of Education, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou, China
| | - Zijian Zhao
- School of Physical Education Institute (Main Campus), Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
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Sun H, Soh KG, Roslan S, Norjali Wazir MRW, Liu F, Zhao Z. The Counteractive Effect of Self-Regulation-Based Interventions on Prior Mental Exertion: A Systematic Review of Randomised Controlled Trials. Brain Sci 2022; 12:896. [PMID: 35884703 PMCID: PMC9313235 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12070896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 07/06/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Many investigations have been performed on the effects of mental exertion that consumes self-regulatory resources and then affects physical and/or cognitive performance later on. However, the effect of manipulating self-regulation and interventions to attenuate this negative effect remains unclear. Moreover, there is continuous controversy regarding the resource model of self-regulation. OBJECTIVE We conducted a systematic review to assess the literature on manipulating self-regulation based on four ingredients (standard, monitoring, strength, and motivation) in order to counter mental exertion and improve physical and/or cognitive performance. The results provide more insight into the resource model. METHOD A thorough search was conducted to extract the relevant literature from several databases, as well as Google Scholar, and the sources from the references were included as grey literature. A self-regulation intervention compared to a control condition, a physical and/or cognitive task, and a randomised controlled trial were selected. RESULT A total of 39 publications were included. Regarding the four components of self-regulation, the interventions could mainly be divided into the following: (i) standard: implementation intervention; (ii) monitoring: biofeedback and time monitoring; (iii) strength: repeated exercise, mindfulness, nature exposure, and recovery strategies; (iv) motivation: autonomy-supportive and monetary incentives. The majority of the interventions led to significant improvement in subsequent self-regulatory performance. In addition, the resource model of self-regulation and attention-restoration theory were the most frequently used theories and supported relevant interventions. CONCLUSION In line with the resource model, manipulating the four components of self-regulation can effectively attenuate the negative influence of mental exertion. The conservation proposed in the strength model of self-regulation was supported in the current findings to explain the role of motivation in the self-regulation process. Future studies can focus on attention as the centre of the metaphorical resource in the model.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Sun
- School of Physical Education Institute (Main Campus), Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China;
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor 43400, Malaysia; (K.G.S.); (M.R.W.N.W.)
| | - Samsilah Roslan
- Department of Foundation of Education, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor 43400, Malaysia;
| | - Mohd Rozilee Wazir Norjali Wazir
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor 43400, Malaysia; (K.G.S.); (M.R.W.N.W.)
| | - Fang Liu
- Department of Social Work, Zhongyuan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 451191, China;
| | - Zijian Zhao
- School of Physical Education Institute (Main Campus), Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China;
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Sun H, Soh KG, Norjali Wazir MRW, Ding C, Xu T, Zhang D. Can Self-Regulatory Strength Training Counter Prior Mental Exertion? A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials. Front Public Health 2022; 10:904374. [PMID: 35757630 PMCID: PMC9226420 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.904374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Prior mental exertion consumes self-regulation and influences any subsequent physical or cognitive performance according to the strength model of self-regulation. However, the counteractive effect of self-regulatory strength training remains unclear. Objective This study aims to report a comprehensive systematic review investigating self-regulatory strength training programmes on physical or cognitive performance. Methods To select relevant studies from the available literature, a thorough search was conducted on PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCOhost (CENTRAL, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, SPORTDicus), Scopus, and Google Scholar, as well as the sources of reference for gray literature. Only randomized controlled trials involving healthy humans, strength-based self-regulation training programmes with comparable protocols, and a physical or cognitive task associated with the study were selected for the current review. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment Development and Evaluation (GRADE) framework was used to develop the summary of findings. Results Twelve articles were included based on the selection criteria. Evidence certainty for outcomes was graded as either low or very low level. The majority of the studies reported that self-regulatory strength training programmes can significantly counter prior mental exertion and decrement of performance, while only one study did not find such improvement. According to the strength model, a period of training increased the ‘self-regulatory muscle.' Conclusion Strength is an important ingredient in the resource model of self-regulation and can be trained to counter prior mental exertion and improve subsequent physical and cognitive performance. The training effects are cross-domain (e.g., emotional and cognitive domains; higher and lower levels of executive functions). However, motivation plays a key role to mobilize this resource. Future studies should examine the mechanism that underlies the strength. Systematic Review Registration https://inplasy.com/inplasy-2022-1-0060/, identifier: INPLASY202210060.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Sun
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Kim Geok Soh
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | | | - Cong Ding
- Department of Sport Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Tingting Xu
- School of Journalism and Communication, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Dong Zhang
- School of Physical Education and Sports, SooChow University, Suzhou, China
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