ABSTRACT
Body morphology is a determinant of functional capacity. It is both a cause and a consequence of the relationship an organism has with its environment. Human body composition, together with biomechanics, psychology, physiology and the effect of the ambient environment, occupies an inter-dependent status with respect to exercise capability and sporting performance. The biomechanical imperative in different sports commonly involves optimising body size or mass, maximising force production and hence acceleration, or perhaps minimising energy expenditure. Athletic ability and training, from a physiological perspective can be seen to deliver these objectives. Although it is widely recognised that sporting success is multi-factorial, the hypothesis can be constructed that in sports with a clear biomechanical or indeed aesthetic mandate, the ultimate performance requires the ideal physique and body composition for that sport. Once it is clear that a sporting activity conforms to the hypothesis, the next objective is to define the nature of the ideal physique in terms of size, shape, composition, proportion and symmetry.
