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Technology: Applying science Applying science to sport is not necessarily a new phenomenon. Sports science is now employed by coaches and elite athletes to analyse technique, minimise physical impact and squeeze as much out of the physical body or equipment as possible. One researcher at the University of Bath is aiming to understand the fundamental principles underlying performance in order to improve an individual athlete’s technique and efficiency. Specifically Dr Aki Salo and his team are looking at the mathematical modelling of the sprint start and investigating sprinting on bends, for example the 200 metres. For over 10 years Dr Salo has also worked with British 4x100 metre, relay teams investigating the baton exchanges and advising the teams to improve the efficiency of these changes. Mathematical modelling of the sprint start allowed the research team to learn key aspects of the start and how an athlete’s technique could be manipulated to improve the performance. Traditionally, this has been done using trial and error by coaches during training, but this model can investigate mathematically which technical changes could help to improve the performance. This can greatly aid training and ensure time and, more importantly, vital energy is not wasted through repeated practice. The same principles can be applied to bend sprinting which requires leaning inwards rather than running in a straight line. The techniques needed in bend sprinting seem to be different to those that coaches and athletes would instinctively think to employ. The analysis of relay teams concentrates on the baton exchanges and how the team could maximise the performance. The significance of Dr Salo’s work has meant that UK Athletics have invited him to attend precompetition training camps over the last 10 years. Notably, Dr Salo was the only biomechanical technical personnel in the whole of Team GB for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. During these preparation camps and at the Championships themselves, Dr Salo has worked with the best British athletes and their coaches – advising and supporting their preparations. Several of these athletes have won medals, for example, the men’s 4x100 metre relay team Gold medal at the Athens Olympics 2004. Researchers at the University of Southampton are also using science to help aid performance by applying naval architecture techniques to understand the science of human swimming. This work has applied techniques developed for evaluating ship self-propulsion, as well as novel wireless sensor and synchronised video systems, to capture the dynamic behaviour of the underwater phase of competitive swimming. PhD students from the University’s Performance Sports Engineering Laboratory (PSEL) have been working on developing a new system for analysing swimming performance that is being used by many of the top British swimmers in conjunction with British Swimming world class technical adviser, Jonty Skinner. When designing a ship, naval architects examine the relationship between a ship’s hull, its shape and how best to propel it through water with minimum power. The Southampton team are using a similar approach and have developed a rig suitable for towing a swimmer through the water whilst tracking propulsive force and speed. As they move along in the water the swimmer is also recorded by two cameras, above the lane and beside it. After swimming a length they can get instant feedback on their speed, power and drag, which was their ultimate body position and where, on each stroke, they were strong or weak as well as watching the footage of their technique. This on-going research programme is jointly funded by British Swimming, UK Sport and the University of Southampton. 14 SECTION ONE : TECHNOLOGY
Men’s 4x100 m relay team review their practice runs at the Aviva World Championships Preparation Camp in San Antonio in summer 2009. From L-R: Craig Pickering, Simeon Williamson, Marlon Devonish, Dr Aki Salo, Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, Rikki Fifton, relay coach Michael Khmel and Tyrone Edgar. Photo courtesy of Aviva/Getty Images SECTION ONE : TECHNOLOGY 15
Page 1 and 2: Supporting a UK success story: The
Page 3 and 4: British Universities & Colleges Spo
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Page 7 and 8: CONTENTS Section 1 technology Secti
Page 9 and 10: Electronic POWERbreathe® K-Series
Page 11 and 12: Strengthening foundations through 3
Page 13: Since then, the Imperial team have
Page 17 and 18: Technology: FOOTBALL FOCUSED Footba
Page 19 and 20: “This interactive approach will a
Page 21 and 22: SECTION ONE : TECHNOLOGY 21
Page 23 and 24: A number of new technologies will b
Page 25 and 26: the concentration of lactate in the
Page 27 and 28: Dr James Betts sampling blood for a
Page 29 and 30: A healthy legacy Recognising the im
Page 31 and 32: mind anticipates the end of a bout
Page 33 and 34: Health and Wellbeing Monitoring air
Page 35 and 36: Sharon Gayter SECTION two : Health
Page 37 and 38: difference. It is the same disabili
Page 39 and 40: Tom Waller, a former Engineering an
Page 41 and 42: Role of drawing in the Olympic Game
Page 43 and 44: Design for disabled athletes Studen
Page 45 and 46: SECTION THREE : DESIGN 45
Page 47 and 48: The first project, ‘Sport for Lif
Page 49 and 50: of the game away from the more expe
Page 51 and 52: Tennis Tennis is another sport whic
Page 53 and 54: London 1948 established Olympism’
Page 55 and 56: Modern Pentathlon celebrates its ce
Page 57 and 58: etween the two countries in the run
Page 59 and 60: PhD student Helen Hoyle Trial plot
Page 61 and 62: World Student Games in Sheffield SE
Page 63 and 64: Lifelong health Physical inactivity

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