Syllabus coverage
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: equipment, e.g. tennis rackets, force plates
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: clothing, e.g. compression wear
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: footwear, e.g. running shoes
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: surfaces, e.g. all-weather pitches
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: facilities, e.g. sport-specific venues, wind tunnels
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: cameras, e.g. photo-finish, video replay
- Explain examples of the use of technology in sport: software, e.g. biomechanical analysis, motion tracking of players
- Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of the use of technology for the performer, team or coach, the sponsor, the event, sport or official, primary spectators and secondary spectators
Part of the AS Level PE 8386 syllabus 8386.
Equipment
Equipment technology changes what a performer can do with the same body. A newer racket does not make the player fitter or more skilful, but it makes every well-struck ball travel faster, so the same technique produces a better outcome.
Cambridge names two examples: tennis rackets and force plates. Learn each as what the technology is, what it measures or improves, and how the performer or coach uses the information.
| Example | What it is and what it does | How it is used in the activity |
|---|---|---|
| Tennis rackets | Rackets are built from lighter, stiffer materials such as graphite and carbon fibre, with larger head sizes and shaped string patterns. The result is a lighter frame that can be swung faster plus a larger, more forgiving striking area, so more power and spin are produced and hits off the centre still land in | A player can hit a heavier serve and a more aggressive forehand, and a mis-hit is more likely to stay in play, which changes the risk attached to attacking shots |
| Force plates | A force plate is a platform containing sensors that measure the force a performer applies to the ground, and how that force changes over time. It is used with a computer to produce a graph of the force against time | A coach uses it to measure the ground reaction force in a jump or a sprint start, so weaknesses in technique, or differences between one leg and the other after injury, can be identified and corrected |
Clothing and footwear
Compression wear is close-fitting clothing designed to support the muscles and manage heat and moisture. It is claimed to improve blood flow, reduce muscle vibration and speed recovery, and it is comfortable and quick-drying. The honest evaluation is that the comfort and moisture control are clear benefits, while the effect on performance is small and much debated.
Running shoes are the clearest example of footwear technology: modern designs use lightweight foam and a curved or rigid plate to return energy to the runner with every stride. Shoes are also matched to the activity: spikes for a track event, studs for a grass pitch, cushioning for road running.
- Grip: studs and sole patterns matched to the surface, so a performer can accelerate and change direction without slipping
- Cushioning: absorbs impact, which reduces the wear on joints and muscle over a long event
- Support: a raised heel, a stiff midsole or strapping supports the foot and ankle, which can reduce the risk of a sprain
- Energy return: a foam midsole or plate returns some of the energy of the landing into the next stride, which helps endurance performance
- COST: technology raises the price, so a performer without the money competes in older or less suitable equipment
Surfaces and facilities
All-weather pitches replaced surfaces that could not survive a winter. An artificial surface is consistent all year, drains quickly, can be used for far more hours in a week and is unaffected by frost, so fixtures are more reliable and the ball behaves predictably.
Facilities include sport-specific venues, designed so that the venue suits one sport or event rather than every sports hall in a town doing a mediocre job of everything: a squash centre built with the correct court dimensions and wall height, an indoor netball court with the correct markings and run-off, or an all-weather athletics stadium. A wind tunnel is a facility used in the laboratory rather than in competition: air is blown over a performer or over clothing to measure drag, which is how a sprinter's clothing and body position are refined for the conditions.
| Technology | Benefit | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| All-weather pitches | Playable in all conditions, consistent bounce and grip, many more hours of use per week, so training and fixtures are reliable | Expensive to install, maintain and replace; harder surface than grass, so a performer who plays on it constantly may be at greater risk of joint and overuse injury |
| Sport-specific venues | Facilities built for one sport, so the surface, dimensions and equipment are correct for that activity and elite performers can train in the conditions of competition | High cost that limits them to a few locations, so performers must travel and provision becomes uneven between regions |
| Wind tunnels | Measures drag accurately and repeatably, so kit, clothing and body position are refined in a controlled environment rather than by trial and error outdoors | Very expensive, so only well-funded sports and teams can use it, which widens the gap between the best-funded and the rest |
Cameras and software: deciding results and analysing performance
Camera technology is used in two ways: to decide a result, and to review a decision that has already been made.
Photo-finish was the first major example. Cameras at the finish line photograph the field continuously as a narrow strip, so the finishing order can be judged to a fraction of a second and no longer depends on the naked eye. Video replay, and the systems built on it, allow an official to look again at a disputed incident, from more than one angle and at reduced speed, before confirming the decision.
The evaluation is a trade-off between accuracy and interruption. Replay reduces clear error and gives the spectator certainty, but it stops the game dead, and the margin of error is only moved rather than removed, because a frame, a camera angle and a measurement line still require a judgement.
Biomechanical analysis software takes video of a performer, tracks the joints and calculates angles, speeds and forces through a movement. A coach can then compare a performer's technique with a model of good technique and correct it with evidence rather than with an opinion.
Motion tracking of players works the other way round. Instead of analysing one performer, it tracks everyone in a match using cameras, wearable sensors or a positioning system, producing data on distance covered, top speed, number of sprints, work rate and position on the pitch. It is also used in training to monitor load and recovery.
The evaluative point is what happens with the data. Numbers are only useful if a coach turns them into a change: choosing a different position for a player, adjusting the training load to protect an injury-prone performer, or redesigning a technique.
The five-way evaluation at a glance
The syllabus names five groups whose experience of technology differs, and the same technology can be an advantage to one and a disadvantage to another. Video review, for example, helps the official reach the right decision and helps the remote spectator see why, while the primary spectator waits and the performer's celebration is on hold.
Use the table to organise the whole evaluation, then develop whichever groups the question names.
| Group | Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|---|
| Performer, team or coach | Better equipment and kit improves performance and comfort; biomechanical analysis identifies technical weaknesses; motion tracking monitors work rate, load and recovery; injury risk is reduced by correct footwear and surface; coaching decisions are based on evidence | Expensive, so the best technology goes to the best-funded performer and widens the gap; over-reliance on data can replace a coach's judgement; performer's technique and responsibility are reduced when equipment does the work; tracking raises privacy issues and adds pressure; equipment can create a false sense of invincibility |
| Sponsor | Technology gives the sponsor a new product to sell and a visible place in the sport, such as branded kit, timing systems and replay graphics; association with technology reinforces a modern, innovative image; successful teams using the sponsor's equipment are a powerful advertisement | Research and development costs are high and never guaranteed to pay back; the sponsorship is worthless if a rival's equipment outperforms it; the sponsor is exposed if the technology fails during an event or is shown to be inaccurate |
| Event, sport or official | Cameras and timing technology protect the credibility of the result; officials get evidence and support, which reduces pressure and reduces clear error; equipment technology raises the standard of performance the event can show; data improves the presentation of the event to the audience | High cost of installation and trained operators, which favours big events and rich sports; decisions take longer and interrupt the flow of play; the technology can itself be disputed, so the sport loses authority rather than gaining it; expensive technology widens the gap between events |
| Primary spectators (at the event) | Big screens and replay let the crowd see what the official is seeing and why; close decisions are explained; timing and measurement systems make a close finish fair; the experience is enhanced by instant data and graphics | Long stoppages while a decision is reviewed, so the atmosphere drains away; the crowd cannot always hear the reasoning or see the same angle; the live experience feels less decisive when every decision is deferred to a screen |
| Secondary spectators (remote audience) | Multiple angles, slow motion, replays and on-screen graphics explain decisions and performance in detail; tracking data and analysis give an insight the live spectator never gets; timing technology makes a close finish watchable and understandable at home | The broadcast becomes an argument about the technology rather than about the sport; long replay sequences reduce the amount of live action shown; not all sports or events are covered, so access is uneven; viewers may rely on the screen instead of forming their own view |
Evaluating for the performer, team or coach, and for the sponsor
For the performer, team or coach, technology is useful when it answers a question the coach could not answer alone. Force plates and biomechanical analysis show why a jump is weak, motion tracking shows that a performer's work rate drops in the last twenty minutes, and a correctly fitted shoe reduces the load on the joints. Used that way, technology improves performance and reduces injury risk.
The costs come from cost and from dependency. Only well-funded performers and teams can afford the best equipment and analysis, so technology widens the gap between those who can pay for it and those who cannot. Over-reliance on data can replace the coach's judgement, and a performer who lets the equipment do the work may never develop the technique the equipment is compensating for.
For the sponsor, technology is both a product and a stage. A business that makes equipment or analysis systems buys visibility in the sport, and using its technology when a team wins is proof of its value to every spectator watching. The risk is R&D cost and the fact that the sponsor cannot control the result: a rival's equipment performing better, or a timing system failing during a major final, turns the advertisement into a liability.
Judgement: for the performer and coach, technology is worth its cost when the data leads to a change in training or technique, because the gain is then permanent. For the sponsor, the investment pays where the sport has a large broadcast audience to see the product in use.
Evaluating for the event, sport or official, and for the spectators
For the event, sport or official, technology protects the credibility of the result. Timing systems, cameras and replay give the official evidence, reduce clear error and reduce the pressure of making a decision that thousands of people will dispute. The cost is money and interruption: the equipment is expensive, it needs trained operators, and every review stops the event. There is also a risk that the technology becomes the story; when the accuracy of a system is disputed, the sport loses authority rather than gaining it.
For primary spectators, the gain is understanding. They can see the same replay as the official on a big screen and the reason for the decision becomes visible instead of being a mystery. The cost is the interruption: the crowd waits, the atmosphere drains, and the celebration that would have followed a winning goal is delayed until a review is complete.
For secondary spectators, the gains are the largest of any group. Multiple angles, slow motion, tracking data and on-screen graphics give detail the live spectator cannot see, and a close finish can be measured to a fraction of a second on the screen. The costs are that the broadcast turns into a discussion about the technology rather than the sport, and that replay sequences consume time that could show live action.
Judgement: the remote audience has gained most, because technology has made elite sport both clearer and far more accessible, while the primary spectator has gained accuracy and lost momentum. Where accuracy and the flow of the game conflict, the balance should depend on what is at stake: a decision that decides a result justifies the interruption, and a routine one does not.
Key terms you must be able to define
- Force plate
- A platform containing sensors that measures the force a performer applies to the ground and how it changes over time, used with software to analyse technique and reduce injury risk.
- Compression wear
- Close-fitting clothing designed to support the muscles, manage heat and moisture and aid recovery.
- All-weather pitch
- An artificial surface designed to be playable in all conditions, providing a consistent bounce and grip and allowing far more hours of use than grass.
- Wind tunnel
- A facility in which air is blown over a performer or their clothing to measure drag, so that kit, clothing and body position can be refined.
- Photo-finish
- A camera system at the finish line that photographs the field continuously, so the finishing order can be judged to a fraction of a second.
- Video replay
- The use of camera footage, viewed from more than one angle and at reduced speed, to review a decision that has already been made.
- Biomechanical analysis
- The use of software to track the joints and calculate angles, speeds and forces through a movement, so technique can be compared with a model of good technique.
- Motion tracking
- Technology using cameras, sensors or positioning systems to track performers during play and produce data on distance covered, speed, sprints, work rate and position.
- Primary spectators
- Spectators watching the event at the venue.
- Secondary spectators
- Spectators watching the event remotely, through television, streaming or another broadcast medium.
Applied to your sport
Cambridge requires you to apply this knowledge to physical activities. Use these as models, then write your own for the sport you play.
A modern racket is lighter and has a larger head than the wooden frames it replaced, so the same swing speed produces more power and a slightly mis-hit ball still lands in. The cost is that a performer with the newest frame has a small but real advantage, and a player who cannot afford to restring and replace rackets as often competes with equipment that has lost its tension.
Photo-finish technology decides a sprint in which two performers look level to the naked eye, and modern shoe designs return some of the energy of each landing into the next stride. Both are clear performance gains, but both raise cost, so a performer with funded shoes and access to a wind tunnel for kit testing starts with an advantage a school performer does not have.
Motion tracking of players gives the coach data on distance covered, number of sprints and work rate, which is used to plan substitutions and to adjust the training load so that a performer is not overloaded. Video review gives the official a second look at a penalty-box incident. The primary spectator in the stadium waits while the review takes place, while the remote spectator at home sees the replays and the tracking graphics that explain it.
Video review has changed the sport more than any piece of equipment, because acts off the ball can now be punished after the referee has missed them during play. The gain is accuracy and protection for performers; the cost is that the crowd, and often the players, stand around while the footage is examined.
Biomechanical analysis of the stroke, filmed from above and below the water, shows the coach exactly where a swimmer's hand enters and how the pull develops, so technique can be corrected with evidence rather than opinion. All-weather and indoor pool facilities add a second layer of technology, because consistent water temperature and lane conditions allow training to be repeated at a controlled standard.
Footwear and surface technology illustrate the trade-off clearly. Cushioned shoes and a soft, consistent surface reduce impact and overuse injury across a long season, but the same cushioning removes some of the stability a runner needs on uneven ground, so a performer must match the shoe to the course rather than to the brand.
Flashcards
Click a card to flip it. Mark honestly — the tracker uses this.
Exam-style questions
7 questions, 23 marks. Write your answer, then reveal the mark scheme and tick each point you actually made. Answering honestly here is what makes the rest of the site useful.
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Mark scheme — tick each point you actually made
Exam technique for this topic
- Learn the seven syllabus categories as a fixed list: equipment, clothing, footwear, surfaces, facilities, cameras, software. A question that asks for examples is then a matter of picking from a list you already know.
- Turn every example into a chain: what the technology is, what it measures or improves, and what the performer, coach or spectator does with it. Naming a force plate without saying what it measures scores nothing.
- For an evaluate question, write one developed advantage and one developed disadvantage for each group named in the question, then a judgement. Technology questions are almost always balanced questions.
- Use the same example for both sides where you can. Video replay gives accuracy and costs time; tracking data gives evidence and raises privacy and pressure. That keeps the answer balanced and quick to write.
- Stay inside the Component 2 activity list: Tennis, Track and field athletics, Association football, Rugby union, Competitive swimming, Cross-country running, Badminton and Cricket all work well.
Why students lose marks here
Where this fits in AS Level PE 8386
This page is one topic of Cambridge AS Level PE 8386. AS Level PE 8386 is the course home: every area and every topic in Cambridge's own order, the papers you sit and what each one tests, and the exam-practice tools. The full topic list, with each topic linked to its revision page, is on the AS Level PE 8386 syllabus page.