Sports and Technology: Recap

What might have begun as simple recreation has developed into an industry of its own. Once limited to newspapers, then radio, followed by local television coverage, and now entire networks, sports has evolved with the technological media advancements. The equipment to each sport has also seen improvements. In American football, protecting the head has resulted in safer helmets. In an effort to be quicker, sports across every spectrum are utilizing undergarments that do not weigh the player down. On-the-field cameras are now being applied to correct errors that the human eye might could not detect along. Since its beginning, the aim for stronger, bigger, and faster has resulted in sports and technology emerging together.

Soccer Could Adopt Other Sports' Technology

Hawk-eye is a ball-tracking technology used in tennis to resolve controversial line calls. What may appear as an "out" to the umpire could possibly be in by five millimeters after reexamination. Hawk-eye uses ten cameras to clarify an "in" or "out"; thus, reducing the chances of errors occurring by the system. If FIFA chooses to use a Hawk-like technology, cameras installed at the goal-line in cooperation with a camera-crew could review shots that are not called correctly by the officials. It could slow down the speed of the match but errors would be eliminated. Another possibility to eliminate faults such as offsides is to employ Instant Replay as used in American football. The National Football League allows more than just touchdowns to be reviewed; it allows challenges to made on fumbles, passes (complete or incomplete), and ball placement on the field. The same crew that would manage the goal-line cameras would also oversee field position of players. FIFA should explore both Hawk-eye and Instant Replay to eliminate errors not just pertaining to goals but to players being offsides.

Soccer Needs Technology

Ever since the Fall, human beings have been full of error and in sports this is no more evident than in soccer. Football has been reluctant to adopt technology to make the game as error-free as possible. In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, it was clearly shown that referees are limited in judgment based on what they see. They need assistance--especially in determining if shots cross the goal line or not. One example for the need of Goal-Line Technology occurred in the "Knock Out Stage Round of 16." Germany was up 2-1 over England when Frank Lampard (Eng) shot towards the opponent's goal post, the ball hit the crossbar, appeared to bounce on the goal-line, and Germany's goalkeeper was able to scoop the ball and remove it from his perimeter. Upon further review, it was shown that the ball had crossed over the goal-line but from the referee's viewpoint it was not possible to distinguish. Another incident that demonstrated the need for technology in soccer was when Argentina played Mexico in the "Round of 16." Argentina's Carlos Tevaz headed the ball into the net for what first appeared as a goal. Again, replay showed that the referees made an error as Tevaz was offside--there were no defenders between him and the goal when he received a pass from his teammate. Perhaps technology already used in other sports could have avoided such errors and changed the outcome of both games.

Under Armour E39

Even with a possible lockout looming, the National Football League still plans to have its annual draft of college players in April. With that said, the Under Armour Scouting Combing was held held in the last week of February for scouts to view potential draftees. What was unique about this combine was the new Under Armour E39 "bug." This device, attached to the player's Heatgear compression shirt and below his chest, is able to measure heart rate, breathing rate, skin surface temperature, and the accelrometry of the athlete. It does all this while transmitting the data to a computer wirelessly. Previously, several wires were attached to the players to measure such properties. Now, the E39 eliminates all that. The purpose of the device is to help players, recruiters, and trainers improve an athlete's physical capabilities. It can also guage, with a trainer's assesstment, the mental state of the player by his heart and breathing rate. Outside the realm of athletic's, another possibility for the E39, as one person commented is, "Future application for technology monitoring the elderly as well as transplant and heart patients." As for now, look for this technology to be adopted by other sports.

Uniforms

With the increased coverage of professional sports, younger athletes have received more attention as well. In particular, high school football players get more of the interest with two all-star games held annually in the month of January. During this time, college recruiters have the opportunity to scout out future talent for their programs. At the same time, with plenty of national exposure, companies such as Under Armour can exhibit their latest innovations.

For the Under Armour All-America Football Game in 2011, the company unveiled a uniform technology comparable to Nike's Pro Combat used by top football programs across the nation. Branched off its original compression shirts, Under Armour's uniforms were equipped to be a tight-fit on the players. The concept behind this was that players would have fewer probabilities to be grabbed and dragged by an opponent. Also, the jerseys were thirty-three percent lighter than the previous year's uniform--making the players faster. Furthermore, a mesh-fabric integrated on the interior of the pants allowed for more breathability and reduction of heat. However, what made the Under Armour uniforms distinctive from Nike's were the Muscle Performance Panels across the hamstring. From the looks of it, the MPPs are made from a different material than the rest of the uniform. No details could be found other than Under Armour's statement of, "it provides the muscle with stability." In the future, expect other brands to put out uniforms with similar designs and Nike and Under Armour to develop more lighter uniforms.