In order to maximise their performance at London 2012, athletes from various teams are exchanging their personal data to use cutting-edge technology to measure critical performance-related factors. Using the latest technology, athletes are managing to monitor their exercise patterns, as well as other crucial factors, such as sleep and diet.
Such measures are deemed necessary as they can make the difference between gold and silver medals, and therefore underline the increasing influence technology is having on athletics. According to the Financial Times, several technology health companies will use the data they receive from athletes will be used to enhance their product range.
Ben Rubin, the Chief Executive of Zeo, a firm that offers a sleep monitoring service, explained the advantage of this approach. "Olympic athletes are on the leading edge of performance," he said. "You can expect perfect compliance, which leads to perfect data. We seek to understand their sleep first, then trickle those findings down to everyday athletes and ordinary folks."
Another of the firms involved with this process is DexCom, which has donated continuous glucose monitors to several of the athletes from Team USA. Kevin Sayer, President of the firm, explained: "These are early-phase trials to see how it works. We’re open to learn."
It has been revealed that the majority of the athletes who are using the devices are pledged to donate their data to big technology firms in return for the right to use their products.