The Role of Engineering in Winning the Olympic Games.
- Paula Merino Casasola
- Aug 20, 2024
- 5 min read
Olympic days have come, and of course, we have a couple of weeks ahead where we will continue to hear about the Paris 2024 Games. The stars of most conversations are the sports that have been added to this edition, like breakdancing and skateboarding, and those that have not returned, losing their “Olympic” title, such as karate.
You may have also heard comments about Yusuf Dikeç, the Turkish marksman who has gone viral on social media for winning silver without using any additional equipment, unlike his opponents who look like characters from a science fiction film.
This striking case has led us to revisit the question of whether all that equipment is truly necessary to be a good marksman or, more broadly, a good athlete. Since it’s rare to find reflections that steer away from politics and focus on how athletes achieve Olympic medals, we've decided to delve into the topic and shed some light on it.
Performance Evolution
I think we can all agree that to win an Olympic medal, you need to be the best in your discipline, but how do you achieve that? Over the years, we have often attributed success in sports to personal talent, hard work, and effort, yet we frequently overlook the essential role that equipment plays in reaching that goal.
Engineering and design have transformed the way sports are played, allowing athletes to achieve ever-higher levels of performance. However, this influence is not without its ethical dilemmas, especially in a setting like the Olympics, where fairness and equal conditions are fundamental values.
Every sport is different, and we wouldn’t dare to judge whether Yusuf’s silver medal is as valuable as a gold due to his technical skill, but let’s focus on other sports more popular in Spain, ones we know a bit more about.
Take tennis, for example; we can observe how tennis rackets have evolved over time. Industrial design has significantly altered the dynamics of the game by impacting athlete performance (one example being the speed of serves, with the 10 fastest serves recorded between 2004 and 2015).
Originally, tennis rackets were made of wood, which significantly limited their flexibility and durability. Over time, materials such as carbon fibre and graphite were introduced, resulting in lighter, more durable products that offer greater control and power. This allows tennis players to hit with more force and precision.
Below are some images showing the evolution of tennis rackets over the past centuries.
But tennis isn’t the only sport where this composite material has made a significant impact. Carbon fibre has also revolutionised sports like cycling, leading to a major transformation in the design and construction of bicycles, which has not only allowed for lighter structures but also improved aerodynamics. This material, combined with factors such as frame geometry, components, and wheels, is crucial for maximising a cyclist’s efficiency and performance. Ultimately, it’s all about reducing wind resistance to maintain higher speeds with less effort.
To illustrate the impact of these innovations, we present the following graph showing the average speed of Tour de France winners over the years:
In the 1900s, bicycles were constructed with steel frames, causing cyclists to cover shorter distances due to fatigue. Aluminium was introduced in 1950, but it wasn't until 1990 that carbon fibre arrived, enabling the creation of bikes weighing less than 7 kg. Combined with the advancements mentioned earlier, this allowed cyclists to maintain average speeds above 40 km/h.
Faster, But Fairer?
It’s now clear that industrial design has driven significant advancements in sports performance, but it has also raised important ethical questions. Technological innovation has improved records and broken barriers, but how fair is it to allow technology to influence the outcome of a competition?
For instance, in sports like cycling or athletics, where speed and aerodynamics play a crucial role, the difference between an athlete equipped with cutting-edge technology and one with standard gear can be substantial. Such technological advantages can become the decisive factor in a victory, rather than the athlete's skill or effort. Could Pierre de Coubertin have envisioned this scenario when he founded the modern Olympic Games, under the motto "Citius, Altius, Fortius" ("Faster, Higher, Stronger") that promoted sport on an international level?
There was an episode in swimming during the 2008 Beijing Olympics where polyurethane swimsuits, such as the Speedo LZR, led to a series of world records that had previously seemed impossible. These swimsuits, designed to reduce drag and improve buoyancy, provided swimmers with such a significant advantage that 23 world records were broken in the same competition.
However, as expected, this phenomenon led to a significant debate about the ethics of allowing such technologies in official competitions. As a result, the International Swimming Federation (FINA) decided to ban these suits from 2010 onwards, reaffirming the need to preserve integrity and fairness in competitions. This decision came after new rules were implemented, such as prohibiting the wearing of more than one suit at a time and ensuring that these suits could not cover the neck, arms, or ankles.
As an Olympic champion told the BBC: 'The integrity of the sport is the man in the water. The swimsuit should be neutral and not a aid for swimming'.
From a distance, it is unclear whether the fact that each swimsuit cost over $500 created inequality among competitors. What we do know is that such materials are usually expensive, much like 'turbo rackets' or 'ultralight bicycles', but the changes in those sports were much more gradual, rather than occurring in just a couple of years.
We could continue mentioning other sports and providing more examples, such as athletics and shoes with carbon plates in the soles. But we wonder whether there is a limit to these innovations, or which sport will be the next to become elitist. Whether the increasing level of technological dependence in sport is related to the demands placed on athletes, or if high-performance sport will become something much more exclusive, as talent alone will no longer suffice; athletes will also need to afford the necessary equipment to compete at the highest levels.
The Future of Sport
We will definitely focus on the positive aspect. The ability of athletes to achieve new levels of performance, surpassing limits that previously seemed insurmountable, keeps us engaged with their progress year after year. These advancements have also made sport more accessible to a larger number of people, by offering safer, more efficient, and inclusive equipment (as we could discuss the entire engineering behind the Paralympic Games, but that would require, at the very least, another article).
Looking to the future, we can participate by implementing lighter, more durable, and smarter materials that could once again change the rules of the game. For example, with the integration of sensors and artificial intelligence that could provide athletes with real-time information about their performance, helping them to improve and optimise every part of their training.
If you’re still hungry for more, we leave you with this article that outlines the workings of the judicial system during the Olympic period; or this news from the Royal Spanish Swimming Federation conveying the excitement of our athletes with the successful swimsuit of that time."
And you? Do you have any projects in mind related to sports equipment?
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