Abstract
Running is a popular sport in which a significant number of people compete at various levels. Unfortunately, overuse injuries caused by running are quite common. For the development of successful injury prevention programs, data on the prevalence of running-related injuries and their causes is essential. The study's main purpose was to determine how common running-related injuries are among Gauteng's long-distance runners. The study utilized a retrospective, quantitative, descriptive, and explorative research design. Runners from several Gauteng running clubs were recruited, and the study was done using an online questionnaire. The response rate to the questionnaire was 77%. The study comprised 199 adult runners, all of whom were registered Gauteng road runners between the ages of 18 and 60 and satisfied the established criteria. The 12-month injury recall questionnaire developed by Bahr, Clarsen and Myklebust (2013) for golf was adapted to the sport of running. The email issued to runners includes a link to the online questionnaire. The data was described using descriptive statistics and frequencies. A multivariate analysis was used to determine the relationship between various risk factors, while a logistic regression analysis was employed to determine whether or not there was an injury. Statistical significance was set at p<0.05. The mean age for males was 45 ±11.93 years and for females 39.94 ±10.56 years. The majority of runners (82.4%) suffered an injury in the 12 months under investigation. Most runners sustained one or two injuries, and more than half of runners reported a recurring running-related injury. The most frequent injuries reported were lower limb injuries to the knee, calf, Achilles, hamstrings and foot. There were significant correlations between running experience (p=0.024) and overuse injuries, however, no other statistically significant correlations were found between running injuries and the different injury risk factors investigated. However, several injured runners reported that they had either increased their training distance prior to injury or increased their training speed/intensity prior to injury. Long-distance runners in Gauteng had a high prevalence of overuse injury, according to the study, highlighting the need for injury prevention programs within this group.
Key words: long-distance runners, running injuries, risk factors, prevention strategies, overuse