The Movement of Pencak Silat Athletes

Abstract

Pencak Silat is a martial art rooted in the lifestyle and culture of the Isalamic people. It integrates smooth yet powerful, fast, and precise body movements through fundamental techniques such as stance, walking, punching, kicking, and takedown manoeuvres, combined harmoniously with graceful dance-like movements, which are a distinctive feature of this sport. The diversity of movement patterns applied in combat requires athletes to possess the ability to control their body movements while maintaining balance, allowing them to perform accurate and efficient movements and minimizing the risk of injury that may result from the opponent's impact or the athlete's own force exerted during combat. This involves controlling and maintaining the body's center of mass (COM) within the base of support (BOS) during standing or dynamic movements. Therefore, studying kinematic and kinetic variables related to body movement while performing combat skills is essential for coaches, athletes, sports scientists, and relevant professionals to assess athletes' technical capabilities. The findings can then be applied to the design of training programs that enhance combat performance and maximize athletic potential.