To improve product performance the Sports Engineering Research Group (SERG) at Sheffield Hallam University (SHU) work to better understand sports equipment and its interaction with users as well as the environment. We research whether something is possible and develop engineering solutions to fulfil product needs using fundamental physics, experimental methods and modelling techniques. We utilise user-centred design to push the […]
The marathon event, is the longest running event held at the Olympic Games, where competitors race over a distance of 42.195 km (26.219 miles) on a set road course. The marathon distance became standardised in 1921 but a version of the marathon event was held at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. The women’s marathon […]
Datasheets in the shot put have now been produced and have highlighted some interesting trends in both the men’s and women’s event. Check out the shot put datasheets here: The shot put is one of the simplest athletic field events, dominated by the impulse that an athlete can produce. The aim of the shot put it […]
Following on from the insights we found in the in the 100 metres datasheets we moved our attention another athletic event, the javelin. The javelin is perhaps the closest modern sporting event linked to ancient human warfare and a full explanation and history of the event can be found here in our blog article. So […]
How to win an Olympic gold medal After all the excitement surrounding the recent London Olympic Games, it’s not just me wanting to be part of the gold medal rush in years to come. As our last ‘Ask a sports engineer’ question indicates: “What is the easiest sport in which to win a gold medal?” […]
In my previous article I examined how quickly Usain Bolt completes his 100 m race, and the difference between his maximum and average running speed. We found that Usain Bolt is the fastest man in the 100 metres, but how fast is he compared to other athletes in other running events or even other athletic […]
Introduction Four years ago Usain Bolt from Jamaica was pretty much unknown, but since then he has become, arguably, the most famous athlete in the world. In 2010 I wrote an article attempting to predict how far he would jump in the long jump. The fame surrounding Bolt is so great that this article quickly […]
Introduction Haile Gebrselassie from Ethiopia is one of the greatest marathon runners of all time. He set the current world record of 2 hours 3 minutes and 59 seconds at the 2008 Berlin Marathon. Recently he announced his retirement, after dropping out of the 2010 New York Marathon with an injury. He later reversed his decision following a letter from Brendan Foster. “My announcement in […]
Introduction Usain Bolt is currently the fastest sprinter in the world. His two world records in last year’s athletics world championships were astonishing even for his standards, but what next? Bolt has often talked about reverting to competing in his original event of the 400 metres, and has already competed in a 400 metre race […]
Engineering Sport 