At the Intel Developers Forum today a BMX rider demonstrated new sensor technology on stage. Many sports are today dependent on subjective judgments rather than objective measures. This could soon be history as sensor technologies get endorsed and approved.

Many sports are dependent on subjective measures determining the winner. Ski jumpers get rated on their style in the air. If not determined by a knock-out, boxing matches are measured on the number of hits and their impact. A third sport with extensive subjective measures is gymnastics. Perhaps we will see a faster adoption in modern sports, such as the X-games, where there is no deeply rooted legacy blocking adoption of new ways to measure the sport. These sports can be changed by sensors integrated the athlete’s clothes and sporting equipment.

With the possible reduction in size of computing processors and the broad market potential for wearables, we can expect a rapid development in this field. Compact computing and sensors can be integrated into a variety of sports equipment. Custom software can be developed to both help athletes to refine their techniques during practice sessions. As rule makers and regulation bodies become familiar with the technology, it can start to have an impact on how to determine the outcome of sporting events today relying on subjective measures. No human eye can see the details of a triple front somersault with a twist better than technology.

The introduction of technology in sports equipment is a fascinating area involving a set of interrelated issues. What today can be demonstrated for one sport will be adopted in other sports wherever athletes can get a competitive advantage. For the broader transformation of sensor-based sports enablers a few more answers need to be found:

  • Which sport do you think can be changed with the introduction of objective measures?

  • In which sports do you see a potential for improving the training results the most?

  • Will the transition to objective measures be determined by the speed of rulemaking or the complexity in developing accurate software algorithms.

  • When will we see measures from wearables for the first time to measure X-games results?

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