Brisbane invention Athens bound
The world's most advanced race analysis system, developed by the Queensland Academy of Sport, will be poolside at the Athens Olympics to help Australian swimmers go for gold.
With just 0.45 of a second separating the world's current top ten ranked 50-metre swimmers, cutting edge sports science can mean the difference between gold and last.
That's why the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS) has created the race analysis system.
Developed by QAS Sport Scientist Tim Kerrison, the QAS Interactive Race Analysis and Video System has revolutionised the way in which video footage and statistical information are used by swimmers and coaches to recognise technical problems and develop race strategy.
Using a mobile computer which can be taken poolside, swimmers and their coaches can view video footage and race analysis data from over 2,000 races.
"The system is so fast we can videotape a heat, input the data and graph the race so the swimmer can make corrections in their style or race plan before their semi-final or final," Tim said.
"Never before have swimmers and coaches been able to access such large amounts of video footage and analysis data in one place."
QAS scholarship holder Casey Flouch, 22, currently Australia's fourth fastest 100 metre freestyle swimmer, is a big fan of the system.
"Seeing your race in three different formats - graph, frame-by-frame video and numerical breakdown - lets you see exactly what you have to do to take the next step forward," Casey said.
"I'm glad Queensland has it and no one else. It's our secret weapon!"
The system made its international debut at the 2003 World Swimming Championships in Japan.
"We had two cameras set up that took footage of all the heats Australians were in and also the heats of the top swimmers from other countries," Tim said.
This data is being used to help prepare swimmers for the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad in Athens from August 13 to 19 this year.
Information: www.qasport.qld.gov.au
Last reviewed 19 January 2006