THE INSTITUT CATALÀ DEL PEU CARRIES OUT A BIOMECHANICAL ANALYSIS TO THE CYCLIST BENJAMÍ PRADES.

On February 21^st the cyclist Benjamí Prades visited our installations of the Institut Català del Peu in order to carry out a biomechanical analysis in Fitmetric, our Biomechanical Department of the Institut Català del Peu. Benjamí, is one of the Catalan cyclists who we treat by the Catalan Cycling Federation through the programs of biomechanical grants of Fitmetric by the Institut Català del Peu. Benjamí Prades is a Catalan cyclist with an amazing list of achievements. The grant from Fitmetric by the Institut Català del Peu is awarded to him in a very timely moment in order to tune up the bike for the year 2023, as well as to know the physique or physical training of the sportsman and to face up to the season in ideal conditions. Regarding the list of achievements, we can say that he has stood out among the best ones in the most important Catalan and Spanish competitions. He has won stages in La Vuelta to Galicia in 2013, in the Banyuwangi Ijen Tour, Japan Tour, Kumanu Tour in 2015, Flores Tour in 2016, Taiwan Tour in 2017, in 2021 he won, as an amateur cyclist, stages in La Vuelta to Cantabria, he also won La Vuelta to the province of Valencia, Ronda to Maestrazgo, moreover, he won more than two stages in La Vuelta to Extremadura. During 2022 and 2023 he is competing as a professional cyclist in the Ukyo team. Benjamí Prades travels during the most part of the year; however, we have been able to carry out to him a biomechanical analysis before the beginning of the 2023 season. Fortunately, he will be able to train for some weeks with the bike ready, in order to consolidate all the changes made and previous to the beginning of races. As regards to tune up the bike, is a complex subject, above all, when we are so near to the commencement of the races and the feelings on the bike are not like in previous years. As you will know, cyclists are changing their bikes every year, but they also change their shoes and saddles, and, all this, make that the feelings on the bike can be very different between one season and the next one. Therefore, the task is complex. This season we have had some handicaps about comfort, which were affecting him in the feeling of the performance. Although Benjamí is aware  when watching the watts moving during the trainings, they reflected a positive setback. So, which are the circumstances we have? Inconvenience, a lack of adjustment, inappropriate adjustments, materials which do not comply with the levels of comfort they say? Therefore, the task of tunning up the bike is not an easy task. So, several hours are necessary in order to check that the adaptation to the adjustments is positive, which we realize they are fundamental. After several hours of carrying out several adjustments, among some of them, the height of the saddle, backward movement, inclinations, rotation of pedals, backward movement of pedals, control of the values of articular angles when pedaling and a long list, we could achieve for the cyclist a very comfortable position. Now, we hope that this year 2023, Benjamí Prades will have a good season, full of sporting success and that the adaptations with the bike will be positive and that the good results with good feelings will be in synergies again.