Tokyo Olympics 2020: Sports Science the ‘Ultimate winner’
Sports have always been an integral part of human civilization and culture. From the Ancient Olympics held from 776 BC to 393 AD in Olympia, Greece, to the Modern Olympics in 2021, the Journey of sports tournaments has come a long way in the known history of 2800 years. From 1896 to 2021, the Olympics were organized every four years except during the World Wars. Before 1986, professional players were not allowed to participate, but they also got the green signal to play in the Olympics. This proved a revolutionary step as this changed the fate of the whole event forever. The entry of professionals brings the competition and quality of sports to a new level. New tricks, techniques, and technologies came into play. That was the time when something now called ‘Sports Science’ came into existence. Let us know about it in detail.
What is Sports Science?
Three decades ago, when professionals started playing in the Olympics, Sports science that was not in the picture earlier started getting top priority in sports. Sports science includes every aspect of sportsman life, from food habits to training to mental state to examining the body. Nowadays, sportspeople get accompanied by many sports scientists during the events. Sports science's growing importance can be gauged because this year’s Olympics record-high number of Sports scientists coming with athletes. “Thousands of cameras will be focused on the athletes. But behind each runner, swimmer, or gymnast, there will be an expert team of scientists, who will help the players in the competition, both physically and mentally,” Sports medicine expert Dinesh Samujh said.
Why is Sports Science important?
The sports scientists accompanying every player make sure that the player can focus on game practice, fitness training, and daily activities properly. This time their work is more difficult as the specter of Covid-19 is putting extra stress on Athletes’ minds. Sports science has been looking into several aspects in which the latest scientific research can benefit sportspersons.
For instance, sports scientists have investigated how an athlete’s physiology enables them to excel in sports. Nowadays, it is being used to decide the best sports for a sportsperson to get the most success. In the US, scientists are exploring the science behind striking a ball thrown at incredible speeds in baseball. Some scientists are using virtual science to give their players an edge over others in sports and boost their self-confidence.
Tokyo Olympics 2020
Tokyo will be hot and humid at this time of the year. Samujh says that efforts are being made to improve the athletes’ abilities to deal with extreme heat and humidity by changing the training methods to suit the weather. Not only this, data scientists are increasingly using technology like wearable sensors and machine learning to prevent potential injuries.
Sports and sports science have complemented each other since the 1980s, its reach, capabilities, and importance will increase even further. The development of AI, VR, and many other revolutionary technologies in medical and sports science will help produce better players in the future. The countries that will focus on the development of Sports science technologies now will be future tally toppers. As a country, India has immense potential, talent, and ability. By generating a better sports culture, developing sports science technologies, and focusing on many sports which we are completely missing out on right now, like Aquatics and Athletics, we can win many more medals than now in the future. Hopefully, India will be a consistent tally topper in the next few decades and make winning medals a habit.
