The Real Science of Sport Podcast

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The opening five days of the Milan Cortina Winter Games have produced some spectacular performances and notable talking points. The Spotlight reveals some insights on those performances. We ask whether Lindsay Vonn's decision to race only 9 days after a ruptured ACL was a justifiable, correct one? Gareth has a new favourite sport - Cross-country skiing, dominated in spectacular fashion by Johannes Hofslot Klaebo and Sweden's women. Gareth is less enamoured with figure skating, but we discuss subjective sports and how coverage has improved to offer insights on scoring, and where it can continue to advance. We commend the coverage and footage from the Games, with revolutionary, spectacular drone footage. Speed skating is also in the Spotlight, and we share some insights that have been missing from the coverage, related to pacing. We also discover that some researchers suggest that the lane allocation offers significant advantages in some events.

And finally, we end on 'penis-gate', the story (or is that a non-story) about the search for ski-jumping distance through the most literal application of 'marginal gains' you can imagine.

That, and more, in the first of our Winter Olympic Spotlight shows.

Links

The story of ski jumpers injecting acid into their genitals for jumping gains
The Guardian's coverage of Lindsay Vonn's dramatic downhill
Our supporters weigh in on Vonn's decision to race, with some insightful comments and questions (supporters only - pledge above for access!)
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Professor Florentina 'Fleur' Hettinga loves speed skating. Not only has she competed as an athlete in the discipline, but she has also researched many elements of the sport, from the physiology of the top athletes to the technical expertise and equipment needed to be among the best. Based in Amsterdam, Hettinga is at the centre of Dutch speed skating excellence, serving as Head of Department of Human Movement Sciences at the Vrije Universiteit and as a professor at the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences. Hettinga talks Mike and Ross through the fascinating equipment used in modern speed skating, the technical skills that need to be honed to be competitive, and the unique, non-event-specific training that many of the top speed skaters employ. If you're watching the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Games, start here.

SHOW NOTES:

Fleur Hettinga’s research profile

The training insights of Nils van der Poel
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Show Notes

On the Spotlight this week, we wrap up the Australian Open where dramatic semi finals saw Alcaraz overcome cramp (to Zverev's dismay), Djokovic overcome Sinner (to Ross' prediction dismay), and then Alcaraz overpower Djokovic to win a career Grand Slam. Elana Rybakina won the women's title, powered by a dominant serve and a few harsh, but helpful words from her coach.

Then it's a concussion and head injury discussion, with a Spotlight on football and rugby. Should young children be tackling and heading a football? We explore those debates and discover that bans and delays don't play out quite the same way in the two sports, but that many unanswered questions remain. A recent paper by Ross and some colleagues finds that rugby players wearing headgear are more likely to suffer injuries than those not wearing headgear. An odd finding, but confounded by history and bias, as a lesson for how research limitations play out.

And finally, does Karsten Blummenfelt really have a VO2max of 101 ml/kg/min? The Norwegian triathlete published that number earlier in the week, and it was met with skepticism bordering on ridicule. We discuss why the number isn't physiologically believable, what it means, and how errors in measurement might occur.

Finally finally, if you enjoy the show and want to show your support, then become a Supporter with a small monthly donation, and you'll also get access to our Community Chat, and, as discussed in this show, upcoming Live Event Coverage.

Links

The Contact Conundrum: Are We Introducing Contact at the Correct Time in Youth Sports?

Wearing Regulation Soft-Padded Headgear Does Not Reduce the Risk of Head Injuries in Professional Men's Rugby Players: An Observational Cohort Study

The Spennymoor Heading Trial Article

Article on Blummenfelts 101 VO2max

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Norwegian Oyvind Sandbakk is a specialist in the brutally tough world of cross-country skiing and biathlon. He is Sports Director at the Norwegian School of Elite Sports and a Professor II at the School of Sport Science at the UiT The Artic University of Norway. A former World Cup cross-country skier himself, Oyvind has worked with many of Norway's top athletes in Nordic sports. We delve into the technical details of both disciplines (including the dark art of waxing!), the gear involved in both sports, the physiology required to be one of the best in the world and what to watch for at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Show notes

The article referred to in the show about the importance of waxing, and the number of skis the athletes have
Here is Oyvind's research profile page with his university
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Figure skating is one of the most popular sports at the Winter Olympics as it combines world-class athleticism with dance, choreography and music. Jackie Wong is one of the world's leading experts on figure skating and takes us behind the scenes of what it takes to be among the best in the world. From blade sharpening to music choice (the Back Street Boys will be the most popular band in Milan 2026!), figure skaters are defined by their ability to pull off daring manoeuvres with grace against the backdrop of judges watching for the smallest mistake. Wong shares some of his favourite stories from the ice, the routines and stars that have defined the sport and who, and what, to watch for in 2026. Wong is a figure skating analyst and blogs and tweets as Rocker Skating on both his website and podcast. He was a novice skater but has worked as both a judge and coach before covering the sport as an analyst and blogger from 2009.

SHOW NOTES
Jackie's website

Jackie's Podcast with co-hosts Michelle Ellis and Tara Nichols

Jackie Wong (born April 11, 1982) is a figure skating analyst.[1][2] He blogs, tweets and sells merchandise as Rocker Skating as well as hosting the Ice Talk podcast at Ice Network.[3] He is based in New York.[4]
Wong has worked for architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and is currently an associate consultant at McKinsey & Company.[5] A former novice skater who has passed the U.S. Figure Skating juvenile tests and worked as a coach and a judge, he began covering figure skating for Examiner.com in 2009.[6]
He created Rocker Skating as a graduate business school project at the University of Pennsylvania in 2015 and began attracting sponsorships.[7] His commentary ranges from offering technical play-by-plays[8] to sharing his opinions on a skater's choice of costumes and music.[9]
Wong has a bachelor's degree in economics and urban studies from Stanford University, a Master of Architecture degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Design and an MBA from Penn's Wharton School.[6] He contributed to the University of Pennsylvania's biomedical research department by analyzing the movement and positions of the arms, legs and head of ice skaters and presenting them as 3D models.[10] He was selected to compete in Season 36 of "Jeopardy!"[11] and came in second place on the episode that aired May 19, 2020.[12]
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