Pema, an associate professor at the Plateau Medical Research Center of Tibet University and the lead researcher of the study, said that from 2012 to the present, a comparative study was conducted involving 33 students from the Tibet Mountaineering School and members of the Tibet Mountaineering Team, as well as 38 Tibetan University students of the same age group and hometown. There were no significant statistical differences in weight, height, or blood pressure between the two groups.
In terms of morphological indicators, the study tested 28 morphological factors potentially related to mountaineering, including hand length, waist circumference, full upper limb length, upper arm length, forearm length, and palm length. Among these, indicators such as hand length showed significant statistical differences between the mountaineers and the control group.
Hand length is defined as the straight-line distance from the midpoint of the line connecting the radial styloid process and the ulnar styloid process on the palmar side to the tip of the middle finger. The test results showed that the average hand length of 38 Tibetan University students was 18.08 cm, while that of the 33 participating mountaineers was 18.53 cm. This indicates that existing Tibetan mountaineers have "slightly longer hands" than the average person.
The test results also show that the hand lengths of existing mountaineers generally fall within the range of 17.71 cm to 19.35 cm. Experts therefore suggest that individuals with hand lengths within this range may be more suited to mountaineering, and that this indicator could serve as a reference for future talent selection of mountaineers.
Pema said that the research team will continue to conduct studies on talent selection for high-altitude mountaineers in the future, in order to validate the current findings, deepen ongoing research, and provide scientific references and theoretical bases for the selection of high-altitude mountaineers in China.