As for so many, 2021 was another Covid-19 affected year for Sport Science Agency and its staff. In the UK, crowds were absent from major sporting fixtures until May. Even after they returned numbers remained restricted. As the year progressed, however, restrictions were gradually removed and for many, a welcome return of events and full capacity stadia brought the sports industry surging back to life.
Despite the difficulties, 2021 has seen significant growth for SSA, especially in the area of data analysis and insights. The year brought new and exciting clients as well as the continuation of support for existing partners. Below are highlights from a few projects from the past 12 months.
Vodafone & the British and Irish Lions
As the year began, speculation remained about the viability of a number of international sporting events. Amongst these was the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa. Sport Science Agency had been working with principal partner Vodafone, to explore how their expertise could support performance during the tour. The very real possibility of limited performance support during the tour helped to drive the creation of PLAYER.Connect.
PLAYER.Connect takes advantage of Vodafone’s connectivity and Internet of Things (IoT) technology. It allows for the integration of the data from multiple wearables into one performance dashboard. It gives coaches and sport scientists a holistic view of players' performances in training and matches. It can also track wellness and other off the field factors that contribute to athlete welfare.
If only a limited number of coaches or performance staff were allowed to travel, then PLAYER.Connect would allow staff at home to access crucial player data. Fortunately, the full roster of support staff did travel and PLAYER.Connect was used throughout the tour to gather performance data, enhance integration and save time amongst performance, medical and coaching staff. As part of the work with Vodafone, SSA had a member of the team embedded with the Lions for the two weeks that they spent in Jersey. The team was also lucky enough to have tickets to the Lions v Japan game at Murrayfield. The first live sporting event we have been able to attend since March 2020, it was surreal
To find out more about how Vodafone and the British & Irish Lions used data click here
adidas
Mass participation events returned in July. This paved the way for us to restart work with adidas. For SSA the focus was on supporting the launch of the new Adizero Adios Pro 2 at the adidas 1 hour city run series. In 2021 the event took place at Arsenal FC’s Emirates Stadium allowing runners to finish inside the ground.
Sport Science Agency developed a data capture and insight experience for key adidas influencers and members of the adidas runners group. A performance station, where our team could answer performance questions and record physiological data, was established. This allowed for individualised running pods to be fitted to participants who were wearing the new shoe.
Personalised performance data tracking metrics such as power, energy return and pacing were sent to adidas’s guests within minutes of them returning to the performance station. The interest in personal data and how to interpret it is always huge. Sport scientists were on hand to discuss the metrics and highlight how they relate back to the benefits of the new Adizero Adios Pro 2.
Sport Science Agency has worked at a number of events with adidas over the years. The development of personalised data for influencers and members of their running community has resulted in incredible levels of engagement. This year was no different as email open rates exceeded 90% (93.33% to be exact) and each participant opened their email an average of 5.76 times, providing adidas with the level of engagement required. Yet another incredible set of email data for an SSA/adidas project.
Rezzil and HITIQ
An area that SSA has been working in for some time, player welfare, head impacts and concussion, really came to the fore in 2021. New research continued to strengthen understanding amongst the medical and performance communities, whilst stories from rugby players and footballers personalised the issue of many. As pressure grew amongst sports authorities to act, technological innovations began to emerge and we were proud to be part of two in particular.
Manchester-based Virtual Reality (VR) company Rezzil, released its Player 22 system in August to enable safe heading training. Increasing evidence points to a link between heading a football and conditions like dementia in ex-players. As a consequence, The FA, and other governing bodies, have now begun to act. In the UK, new guidelines restrict heading at all levels of the game, with particular emphasis on limiting impacts during training.
However, heading remains part of competitive matches, particularly within the senior game. Limitations on practise could mean that when players are exposed to heading during matches, a lack of technique and strength could lead to more dangerous impacts. Rezzil’s VR Player 22 platform allows for impact-free safe practice to address these concerns.
Sport Science Agency worked with Rezzil throughout the year to develop and deliver its scientific messaging and position it within the heading debate. As interest in Player 22 and safe heading grew from national and international media SSA also represented Rezzil at events and with press and TV. You may have seen SSA Director John Mulcahy on Sky Sports News talking about this very important issue.
Continuing the player welfare message, SSA started to represent industry-leading head impact management company, HITIQ. HITIQ has extensive experience supporting players and teams across Australia via its relationships with the AFL and NRL. This year saw their international expansion via new partnerships with Scottish Rugby and numerous College Football programmes in America. This incredibly important area of sports technology is still developing rapidly and promises very exciting developments in player welfare in the next few years.
Sport Science Agency is supporting this acceleration by working with HITIQ globally. The work is initially focused on the development of their website and building out the brand, product messaging and social media content. The focus on using enhanced data insight to protect players across sport is only just beginning. With more data and better interpretation the safety of players can be transformed. HITIQ, Rezzil and SSA are at the vanguard of this transformation.
WTA & SAP
Data and its interpretation once again featured in a project linked to the year-end WTA finals in Mexico. The world’s leading players were part of a tennis first… game, set and perfect match.
This digital fan engagement activity was a collaboration between WTA, tennis.com and SAP. It used SSA and digital strategy and activation agency Rebel Ventures insight to create player profiles linked to statistics that fans could compare themselves against. The interesting element to this activity was that behaviour traits rather than just playing statistics were used. This gives fans a greater insight as to who they resemble.
Like previous SSA projects, Game, set and perfect match was delivered in two languages, English and Spanish. This lead to people in over 100 countries taking part. Watch this space for more activities linking behaviours of elite players and fans in 2022.
UCI Track Champions League
The year closed for SSA with the inaugural UCI Track Champions League. Four rounds took place in Majorca, Lithuania and a doubleheader at London’s Olympic velodrome. The championship is a collaboration between the UCI and Discovery Sports. It invited the world’s best track cyclists to an all-action endurance and sprint competition, designed for fans watching on TV and in the stands.
As part of the enhanced experience, the series seeks to bring new insights and data to fans via a partnership with AWS. SSA worked at the heart of the planning, strategy and delivery stages. Test events in the Netherlands and France as well as events in Mallorca and Lithuania meant the team had to dust off their passports and experience some of the travel challenges of a COVID world. SSA sat at the intersection of performance, broadcast and press. The team worked closely with AWS and Discovery Sport’s other suppliers to provide performance data for broadcast and via the app. A world first!
Despite the challenges 2021 presented, SSA continued to grow. The increased interest in sports technology, data insight and player welfare allowed SSA’s experience and expertise to support multiple clients. The business continued to work with agencies, rights holders, brands and broadcasters to tell performance stories.
2022 has already started well with a new client win and some excellent news from a long term client who, with SSA’s help will bring the results of their research to the public, expect some good news in the next couple of months!
Sport Science Agency uses its insight and expertise to tell performance stories and unlocks their value for brands, broadcasters and rights holders. To see some of our work click here If you want to know more about what we can do for you, drop us a note via info@sportscienceagency.com and we can arrange to go for a healthy vitamin packed drink.