Enhancing Performance

12.3.2 Use of technology The use of technology to assist sport has gained considerable attention in recent decades, particularly since the irst moon landing in 1969. This feat depended on extensive development and use of computer technology and on the construction of strong but lightweight attire and equipment. The beneits of NASA’s immense technological advancement were soon realised by the rest of the world, and entrepreneurs in both business and sport adapted the technology for reinement in their own areas. Improved cycling helmets, graphite golf club shafts, lycra bodysuits and the controversial fast swimsuits are only some of the sport-related technologies of the last half century. It would be dificult to discern which advances were more signiicant in terms of performances or more beneicial to sport itself. Certainly, computer timing in sports such as swimming and video analysis to improve skill execution rank among the most important developments. Training innovation Institutes of sport and research centres have, as a result of considerable public funding, developed sophisticated methods of measuring and analysing physiological progress as a result of training. Athletes attending sports academies now have access to a wealth of information that is used to monitor the pace of adaptations, together with machines and instruments to observe, analyse and evaluate technique. Two areas where there have been considerable training innovation are in lactate threshold testing and biomechanical analysis. FIGURE 12.44 (a) Lactate threshold testing in the laboratory and (b) a chart that identiles the lactate threshold differences before and after training. (a) Blood lactate (mmol/L) Running speed (km/h) 4 5.5 7 8.5 10 11.8 LT LT 13 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 1 3 5 7 9 11 14.3 16 17 17.8 19 20 Before training (b) After training 536 OPTIONS Lactate threshold testing FIGURE 12.45 Instrument for ield testing of lactate threshold Most athletes use heart rate monitors to establish their level of intensity relative to their target heart rate during exercise. Elite athletes often aim to train at levels of intensity close to the lactate threshold or level at which lactate begins to accumulate rapidly in the blood. This point is characterised by a burning sensation, increased ventilation rate and deteriorating performance. Determining the point at which blood lactate starts to accumulate rapidly is important for athletes as training regimes are geared to push back this point for as long as possible while still working at high levels of intensity. There is a range of equipment and a number of ways to establish lactate threshold. The most accurate and reliable method is testing blood samples during graded exercise tests in the laboratory. In these tests, treadmills, bicycle ergometers or rowing machines are used with blood samples being taken at graded levels of intensity. Using this information, a lactate performance curve is generated and this shows rises in lactate levels. Equipment to do this is both expensive and limited in terms of availability. More convenient and less expensive are portable lactate analysers. However, they require athletes to undergo periodic itness tests that have a set of protocols so that measurement can be compared from one occasion to the next. Simpler ield tests require athletes to perform work similar to what is required in competition. With the aid of special heart rate monitors that have a split time facility, the lactate threshold can be established. For more detailed information on lactate threshold testing, use the Lactate threshold weblink in your Resources tab. Biomechanical analysis Biomechanical analysis is used to improve sporting performance. It explores the various techniques applied to skills such as throwing, catching, bowling, jumping and manipulating objects. Measures such as video analysis, photography, use of comparative images and slow motion replays allows performance of skills to be subjected to a high degree of scrutiny. Movements are explored in detail, problems identiied and ways of making them more biomechanically eficient recommended. Biomechanical analysis aims to make execution of any movement more skilful, eficient and safe. Video analysis, for example, is now used in a range of coaching, viewing and performance appraisal situations. Video allows analysis of player movements, strategies and techniques, with a view to: • improving technique. The way a player executes a movement such as a tennis serve or swimming stroke can be observed repeatedly in slow motion to locate error. • improving visualisation. By observing a skill performed repeatedly or in slow motion, a player’s conceptualisation of what is required for proper execution is enhanced. • establishing biomechanical eficiency. By observing the movements of skilful players, coaches can gain an insight into how movements can be performed more eficiently and demonstrate these to their players. • analysing strategies. Coaches (particularly in team sports where there are numerous movements occurring with the ball and away from the ball) ind video replays useful for analysing the effectiveness of strategies used both by their team and their opponents. TOPIC 12 Improving performance 537 FIGURE 12.46 Coaches and sports scientists use video analysis to monitor and improve a swimmer’s stroke and other elements of technique. Three-dimensional motion analysis Three-dimensional motion analysis is a technique used to examine player movements when executing a speciic skill. With relective markers attached to various parts of the body, a skill such as golf swing is performed. The animation obtained through the sequence can then be scrutinised and used to improve technique, prevent injury or compare with previous performances. To see how this works, use the Biomechanics laboratory weblink in your Resources tab. Global positioning systems (GPS) The use of GPS devices has increased in popularity among high proile teams and players. These devices provide valuable information such as player work rate (speed, distance covered) during a game and ability to recover. This allows training programs to speciically address the skill and itness needs of individual players. These devices have also become popular in golf by providing players with the exact distance from their ball to the pin on the golf green. Use the GPSPORTS weblink in your Resources tab to see how GPS devices are beneiting some clubs in the National Rugby League. Three-dimensional simulations Some three-dimensional simulations are used to provide replications of the way a particular movement should look. By examining these movements, players can observe correct techniques and compare to their own. Simulations can also be used to provide realistic sport ield environments, such as a basketball hoop for players to shoot at. Most of this software provides immediate feedback. Use the Golf swing and Basketball throw weblinks in your Resources tab to view how three-dimensional simulations are used to improve these speciic skills. Weblink: Biomechanics laboratory Weblink: GPSPORTS Weblink: Golf swing Weblink: Basketball throw 538 OPTIONS ✐ ✐ “c12ImprovingPerformance” — 2018/6/12 — 14:16 — page 539 — #61 ✐ ✐ ✐ ✐ ✐ ✐ Equipment advances Modern athletes have a considerable advantage in terms of equipment available to improve performances or make skill execution easier and safer. Some examples of equipment advances are shown in table 12.11. TABLE 12.11 Training innovations and their effect on performance Sport Equipment advances Implications High jump High jump mats used instead of sand Techniques like the Fosbury flop instead of the scissors Heights cleared by athletes are increased because landing on their back is now possible. Pole vault Carbon fibre poles Material allows greater flex and therefore increased vertical propulsion over the bar. Running Lightweight nylon used in spikes Lycra clothing Weight and air resistance effects on times are reduced, and comfort for the athlete is increased. Swimming Bodysuits Caps Goggles Breaststroke whip kick Underwater dolphin movement in backstroke and butterfly Drag component is reduced. Streamlining is improved. Swimmer achieves greater propulsion through water. Swimmer produces more efficient and powerful force. Golf Synthetic fibres (for example, tungsten used in golf balls) Graphite shafts Metal alloy heads on driving clubs Balls respond better for distance, spin and control. Durability is improved. Dimples vary to give balls different characteristics (for example, distance or spin). More variation in ‘flex’ creates a higher ‘whipping’ action for extra distance. Greater area of contact results in high level of result (that is, less margin for error). Accuracy is increased. Lighter material allows more mass at the point of contact, creating greater distance. Cycling Carbon fibre components Helmets Suspension on mountain bikes Frames, pedals, wheels, gears, etc. weigh less, so create less resistance. The efficiency of the cyclist’s effort is increased. The shapes and designs of components are more aerodynamically sound. Cyclists can ride more extreme country safely. The stress on cyclists’ bodies is reduced, so energy is focused on creating forward motion. Sprint running Crouch start versus standing start Biomechanical efficiency is increased and quadriceps are able to create greater forward force out of the blocks. Discus/ shot-put Rotation (spin) delivery Velocity of projectile is increased at point of release. Momentum is increased as a result of the combined muscle actions involved. Athletics Rubber compound used in tracks and runways Tracks respond to effort, so the efficiency of an athlete’s output is increased. There is a high reaction component for jumps and forward motion. Australian football Configuration of stops used in football boots There is less stress on players’ feet because boots are like running shoes; agility is increased. TOPIC 12 Improving performance 539 Fast swimsuits The technology of racing swimsuits advanced considerably from 2000. Manufacturers competed to produce suits with the most performance-enhancing features while staying within the competition rules of not improving buoyancy. For example, the features of the Speedo LZR Racer, approved and worn by the medal-winning swimmers at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, included: • fabric that had the lowest possible level of friction drag in the water, developed using NASA’s wind tunnel technology • a streamlined shape with a corset-like support around the lower torso to help swimmers hold the best position in the water • fully bonded seams to reduce drag while allowing full movement and lexibility. FIGURE 12.47 The Speedo LZR Racer was approved and worn by many swimmers at the 2008 Beijing Olympics but was banned from use in competitions from 2010. Issues of fairness and equity were raised. Some suggested that swimmers who wore the fast suits had a significant advantage over other swimmers who could not afford them. Others saw the technology as a natural progression in the sport and used the example of the cyclists’ aerodynamic helmet shape, which was launched controversially at the 1984 Olympics but is now standard equipment worn by all racing cyclists. The debate escalated in mid-2009 when a new range of suits was introduced, made from all-polyurethane fabric that signiicantly improved buoyancy. Swimming’s governing body, FINA, acknowledged that the technology had gone too far and imposed a ban from 2010 on ‘any device or swimsuit that may aid speed, buoyancy or endurance’. This was not before a large number of world records were broken at the 2009 World Championships by some swimmers wearing the all-polyurethane full-body suits. New rules from 2010 specify the type of textile and the shape of the suits for men and women. Use the FINA weblink in your Resources tab to access the latest rules and restrictions. Compression garments Compression garments are a type of athletic clothing that it very tightly to the body providing a sense of irmness around the limbs during exercise. It is claimed that they advance the recovery process following activity, improve performance by delaying the onset of fatigue and decrease muscular damage as a result of exercise. Further research needs to be done to fully substantiate these claims. To further investigate the beneits of compression garments, use the Compression garments weblink in your Resources tab. Golf balls The golf ball used today is larger and technology has been able to embed it with the most appropriate number and size of dimples for maximum elevation and distance given the clubhead speed applied by the golfer. Manufacturers strive to design and create the most technologically superior golf balls for top class competition. Other examples of equipment advances are shown in table 12.11. 540 OPTIONS Use the Ready, tech, go weblink in your Resources tab and read the article ‘Ready, tech go’. Some of these technologies improve performance while others improve data collection and scoring. What drives the race to continually improve technology in sport? Are we becoming too dependent on technological advancements for success? Inquiry Technology and sport Divide the class into small groups. Allocate each group one of the following technology areas: • computerised timing; for example, touch pads and multifunction stopwatches • video analysis; for example, biomechanical analysis and slow motion replays • equipment; for example, golf clubs and balls • clothing; for example, racer swimsuits and lycra clothing • physiological performance; for example, lactate and maximal oxygen uptake testing. In your groups, research the area and investigate how this technology has been used to improve performance. Present indings from each group to the class. Inquiry Ethical issues Develop an argument to address the following issues. • Has technology gone too far in attempting to improve sports performance? • Has access to performance enhancing drugs created unfair competition? Choose a sample of arguments to be read to the class as a stimulus for further debate. Weblink: Lactate threshold Weblink: FINA Weblink: Compressions garments Weblink: Ready, tech, go Option 4 Question 3 Topic 2 Concept 1 Training innovation Summary screen and practice questions Option 4 Question 3 Topic 2 Concept 2 Equipment advances Summary screen and practice questions TOPIC 12 Improving performance 541