KSmall adjustments can often lead to big improvements. This is especially true when it comes to innovations from the world of sport. With the Paris Olympics just around the corner, we can't wait to see what innovations we will get to see in the various sports disciplines. And above all, how those innovations are going to affect the results. In this blog I take a look at some ground-breaking innovations in different sports disciplines and reflect on the importance of patents, including for sports-related inventions.
Advantages secured with a patent
At the Olympics only the very best compete against each other. The differences between the athletes are therefore often very small, especially when it comes to the podium places. Because every minute advantage can make the difference between winning or losing and gold or silver, innovation and patents play a big role. Needless to say you don't want your competitors to make off with your technological advantage.
Innovation in athletics
One of the disciplines in which many technological advances have been made in recent years is athletics. Here the main focus has been on shortening running times and improving running performance over long distances, especially the marathon.
Kenyan marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge, for instance, became the first to break the marathon's magical 2-hour barrier in Vienna on 12 October 2019. He did so with a revolutionary prototype of the Nike AlphaFly, an ultra-light shoe with three carbon plates and two layers of Zoom Air cushioning pads embedded in the soles.
A day later his compatriot Brigid Kosgei broke Paula Radcliffe's 16-year-old marathon world record. She improved Radcliffe's time by more than a minute, using the ZoomX Vaporfly Next%, a model with a thick, resilient foam sole and a carbon fibre plate.
Other athletes and other brands subsequently followed suit, including in sprints and shorter distances. The World Athletics Federation, influenced by critics who labelled the developments as mechanical, then decided to impose restrictions on the use of carbon fibre plates in the sole and how thick they are.
Air resistance and buoyancy
Technological developments are advancing rapidly in cycling and swimming as well. In these sports the emphasis is mainly on reducing weight and reducing air or water resistance. In cycling, new helmets and kits are constantly being developed and tested in wind tunnels.
InIn swimming, swimwear that increases buoyancy has repeatedly proved crucial for results, resulting in controversy, regulations and bans.
Dutch artificial turf pitches across the globe
Of course, innovation does not only take place in the sportswear and fabrics industry. Sports infrastructure is another area in which developments are taking place. Innovative companies are constantly looking for ways to improve fields, tracks, floors and so on to help ensure a more consistent and safer sports performance. For instance, Dutch company SISGrass developed machines for laying hybrid artificial turf pitches serving various sports such as football, rugby, hockey, golf, cricket and tennis, for top national and international competitions.
Protect your invention with a patent
Regardless of whether it involves athletics or cycling, fabrics, sportswear or sports grounds, innovative companies make a major contribution to the performance of athletes and in the development of their sport with their inventions.
So protecting your invention with a patent is also very important in this context. No-one can take away a gold medal or a podium place and an athlete's success can usually not be repeated. But what a patent can do is prevent a competing company from making off with your invention.
If you are working on technological developments for the sports sector and have questions about the protection of your invention then you've come to the right place at EP&C for that too.
Please contact me via X. I would be happy to put you on the right track when it comes to protection.
