Technology In Sport: What Changes And What Impact Does It Have?

Sport has evolved a lot over time, from the equipment used by athletes to the way they practice it.

These changes in fields, courts, and other sports venues have followed a very strong rhythm, with technology as a great ally.

Regardless of what it is, this important tool arrives to modernize and bring new perspectives to several sports.

Therefore, the impacts of technology cause many transformations and are still debated in popular media.

Already present in this environment, what remains are the questions.

What actually changes when technology comes into contact with sports?

And is its impact really positive for the competitions that take place all over the world?

In this article, we will introduce you to the history of technology in sports, and some of the existing technologies in various sports, and we will answer your questions. 

Technology in sport

Sports had their foundation in the most varied ways, in several places around the world, in different years.

Where the greatest intention of their practice was competitiveness, the social and physical well-being of the athletes, besides the search for victory, their greatest motivation.

Whether in soccer, volleyball, basketball, tennis, swimming, and many other sports, in all of them, what could be noticed over time was the evolution of the game, an improvement in the techniques, and an increase in its quality.

And beyond this, what was also seen as the approach of technology for better development of competitions, athletes, clubs, and day-to-day life as a whole. 

Whether to improve the performance of athletes or to make their practice more fair and just, the technology showed that it had and still has a lot to offer. 

It can be said that the first step in this integration came from the great broadcasts that began in the early twentieth century, by radio and television. 

Where the great championships could be followed by fans from many places, simultaneously. Even for fans, technology adds more ways to improve their entertainment and fun. Like, if you like to place bets on your favorite sports like Hockey, you can easily find hockey betting tips online and make your bets more accurate and close to winning.

From the era of black-and-white images to the present day, broadcasts have undergone major changes, moving from traditional media to digital media.

Broadening even further its reach, being available on-demand on various platforms, and many other transformations with regard to its transmission. 

Some examples 

From the way we watch a game, to the way an athlete prepares, technology has also been present.

Nowadays a high-performance athlete has applications that monitor his activities, gains, and losses from day to day.

Athletes are connected to their coaches, physical trainers, nutritionists, and other professionals responsible for their physical fitness.

Besides technology improves training, with more data about the athletes’ performance.

It also acts during matches and other official competitions, when all the developments are put into practice.

So the technologies spread across many sports in these ways:

• Use of 8k cameras and other technologies to capture images in extremely high definition. 
• E-point for referees to communicate at all times.
• New software for detecting doping irregularities, pointing out irregularities more easily.
• Data updates, statistics, scouting of disputes in real-time and other methods of performance analysis.
• Creation of goal-line technology. 
• Presence of the chip connected to soccer, volleyball, and tennis balls, and smartwatches. 
• Creation of VAR for numerous sports, plus semi-automatic offside 
• Sensors and other alerts for automated scoring 
• GPS to track the performance of players and other athletes. 
• Nanotechnology is applied to equipment for various sports.  
• Creation of uniforms and other smart materials. 
• Performance, reflexes, and other performance tests.
• Technological advances are fundamental for each sport to continue being improved. 

And with these examples, it is possible to see the great reach of technology in various areas of sports. 

And in all performances, the developments go through tests to reach conclusions about their effectiveness or not.

Only then each technology is put into practice.  

They are not launched overnight and go through several stages of training and adaptations.

What changes with the arrival of technology in sports

The practice of sports has been gaining more and more technological reinforcements as we discussed in the previous topic. 

However, now it is time to answer one of the questions that were asked at the beginning of the text. 

Does sport change with the arrival of new technologies? 

The answer to this question is yes! 

Sports definitely change with the arrival of software, databases, new artificial intelligence services, and others. 

Sport in general becomes more dynamic, current, and even fairer. 

With the help of all these innovations, the sport doesn’t lose its essence, which is to keep the game going as it should. 

And it gains the increment of tools that can enhance any sporting environment. 

Sometimes technology can influence the final result of a match, team, or individual athlete.

In all these incomes, technological advances are always aimed at enriching sports.  

Following the rules, brings more dynamism, with all the positive points that a technology employed can add.

Based on the use of data, on computer graphics, and biomechanics, the use of more intelligent equipment for preparation.  

With this, what changes is the adaptation of coaches, committees, departments, athletes, and teams in relation to technologies in the midst of routine.  

When they start receiving information about their evolution through specialized applications on a daily basis. 

When they start to deal with automated processes, solved in a few seconds in official competitions. 

Besides having a greater notion of the evolution of performance indexes, whether in training or in games. 

Thus, technologies bring changes to the daily life of a professional athlete, who has departments controlling his or her steps. 

And technology is also present in the performance of an amateur sportsman, who can perceive his evolution based on applications present in smartphones and computers.  

Is the impact on sports positive?

The impact of technology on sports can indeed be considered positive.

It has an immediate effect on breaking records, injury recovery, injury prevention, and also on better practice. 

Thus, innovations begin to contribute to the entire scenario of sports practice, from amateur to professional. 

The existence of applications, websites, and software that can accompany a workout, a game, a race, and many others, end up having a positive impact on those involved. 

This makes the professionals’ analyses more profound. 

And the practice of sports becomes something even more integrated and evolved. 

Where decision-making is more assertive when there is a greater need when it is time to correct a human error. 

This makes it evident that the arrival of technology in many areas of sports is positive and is in a process of expansion from the professional to the amateur. 

It can be appropriate for each sport, for each purpose.