As time progresses, the sports industry has witnessed a constant surge in technological advancements. To keep up with this evolution, several enterprises invest in cutting-edge solutions to enhance the athletes’ performance and focus and the audience’s overall experience.
Even in sports betting, experts utilise cutting-edge tools for NFL expert picks to help them make good predictions. In this article, we will examine how technology is improving sports.
Tech in sports
The sports industry has always been a labyrinthine landscape, requiring a constant search for innovative strategies and techniques to enhance athletes’ performance. As a result, various methods, equipment, and accessories have been incorporated into multiple sporting routines to provide greater comfort and yield optimal results.
Moreover, technology has played a pivotal role in collecting and analyzing vital data, which can be utilized to generate comprehensive sports statistics. This data-driven approach empowers coaches to make informed decisions to help their athletes reach their full potential.
From wearable devices to predictive algorithms, sports technology continues transforming the sports landscape, enabling athletes to reach new heights of excellence.
Benefits of sports tech
Regarding the topic of sports and technological innovation, it is noted that sports such as volleyball, football, swimming, fencing, athletics, and others are already benefiting from technological advancements.
Real-time communication between athletes and coaches is one such example of this progress, resulting in remarkable advancements in competitive physical activities.
Furthermore, the constant development of unique materials to boost maximum performance is also contributing to this progress.
Kinds of sports tech
- Nanotechnology. It involves manufacturing tissues with nanoparticles, which stiffen in case of impact, to protect the athlete from injury. It is a technology still under study, but it presents promising data.
- Biomechanics. Widespread in swimming, it helps to monitor the strokes and jumps of athletes, in addition to tracking their heart rate. It plays a role in the development of fast skin, a unique costume that reduces the body’s friction with water in competitions.
- Hawkeye. This technology, which is primarily used on tennis courts, consists of a network of surveillance cameras that can track the ball after it has been released from any angle.
- ICT (information and communication technology). Artificial intelligence is used in different games to help the coach identify the strengths and weaknesses of athletes to improve them more efficiently.
- Video assistant referee. (VAR) In recent years, VAR has garnered immense popularity in football. With the help of this cutting-edge technology, referees may study crucial moments in a game and make better judgements. The reassessment of bids has proven to be a game-changer, as it helps determine whether a team should be penalised. Thanks to VAR, the outcome of football matches is now more accurate and fair, as referees can take a closer look at crucial moments in the game which they may have missed otherwise.
- Smartwatches. Smartwatches have been in the market for quite some time, and their popularity continues to soar. They come in various models, ranging from simpler ones that cater to casual sports enthusiasts to more sophisticated ones designed to monitor elite athletes’ performance with unparalleled accuracy. These devices can measure a wide range of parameters, including heart rate, the number of calories burned, steps taken throughout the day, and even the level of oxygenation in the blood.
- Smart costumes. Smart costumes represent the next frontier in performance monitoring technology for athletes. This cutting-edge solution involves manufacturing unique clothing embedded with sensors that can analyze the movements performed by athletes during their activities. This technology makes monitoring the muscles used in the activity and tracking the athlete’s heart rate and breathing level in real-time possible. By leveraging data and advanced analytics, athletes and their coaches can gain deeper insights into their performance and adjust their training routines accordingly to optimise their results.
- Fencing wears. Fencing is a fast-paced and dynamic sport, making it difficult for judges to determine the winner based on visual observation alone accurately. To address this challenge, special equipment such as florets and swords have been developed with intelligent sensors that can detect the impact of each hit on the opponent. These sensors activate a light on the signaling device, which is used to determine the winner of the match. To ensure that the sensors work effectively, the costumes worn by fencers allow a small electrical current to travel their entire length.
Final thoughts
As long as there are ways to improve athletes’ performance and enhance the accuracy of decision-making and game monitoring, the sports industry will continue to see investments pour in.
Zuella Montemayor did her degree in psychology at the University of Toronto. She is interested in mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.
