Did he really fully "extend" to catch the ball?

Since this is the opening weekend of college football, we will stick with that theme. Over the course of the season, you'll undoubtedly see many diving catches like the one above. Often times, the announcer will say that the player "fully extended" to catch the pass. Well, this just isn't true. We have been discussing joint actions in class this past week, and I'm sure all of my students could tell you why this isn't true. First, we must identify the joint where the action is taking place. To say a player "fully extended" really does not give an indication of what happened. We must specify the joint where this action, such as flexion, extension, abduction, etc., is taking place. After identifying the joint, we must then identify the proper joint action. I believe that when announcers say a player "fully extended", they are referring to the shoulder/arm. Well, in the above picture, and almost all cases where a player dives for a ball, the motion at the shoulder is not extension, but flexion. The definition of flexion is a motion that decreases the angle of a joint, or moves the segment into the fetal position. In the above picture, it is clear that the athlete's shoulders are moving into the fetal position, therefore, he has shoulder flexion. He also has elbow flexion, wrist flexion, and knee flexion, making the "fully extended" statement even more incorrect. So the next time you are watching a game or Sportscenter and see a diving catch, pay close attention to the description of the movement. It just might not be accurate.