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How Operational Research is a game-changer for Olympic sports

As the Paris 2024 Olympics begin this week, followed by the Paralympic Games 2024, the OR Society, the leading membership organisation for operational researchers, is shining a light on how operational research can be a real game-changer for Olympic sports.

Operational research (OR) is a scientific approach to the solution of problems in the management of complex systems that enables decision makers to make better decisions. It has been used to influence sports strategy for decades to formulate successful strategies, plan fixtures, and project tournament outcomes. From designing tournaments to ensuring fairness and equity, to optimising the performance of Olympic cycling sprinters, OR is playing a key role behind the scenes.

Paralympian, Matt Lloyd[i], an academic at Hull University and Chairman of the Systems Thinking Organisation at the OR Society said: “Operational Research (OR) has had a massive impact on sports, over the last 75 years, whether it has been through helping analyse player performances, scheduling training or providing a greater understanding of events planning, OR has been instrumental in identifying and implementing significant improvements.”

Matt highlights British Cycling which used a technique called marginal gains aggregation[ii]. This wasn’t about overhauling everything but improving every aspect by 1%, encompassing minute changes in equipment, training routines, and even personal hygiene practices.

A marginal gains approach saw a 1% performance improvement which resulted in the British cycling team scooping seven out of 10 gold medals in track cycling at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, matched also at London 2012. Prior to this, British cycling had only won a single gold medal in its 76-year history[iii].

Matt added: “In competitive sports it is about taking a holistic approach to everything from nutrition to sleep patterns to training schedules and using systems and analytics to predict the optimum for peak performance.  Prior to using OR techniques athletes would run, row, cycle etc. but now they can use data to identify opportunities to improve using a range of lifestyle and training data. Small differences can be the difference between medals or not as the British cycling team found out.”

Matt is also one of the authors of a new report[iv] ‘The Power of Sport: A Lifetime of Opportunity,’ a collaborative research project from The Disability Policy Centre and Soda, supported by Nimbus Disability, that was launched on 23 July 2024 at the House of Lords and written using OR concepts as the underlying methodology. The report provides insight through the narrative of sports and leisure, identifying barriers and solutions to improving participation, inclusion and accessibility across the UK and beyond, with recommendations for both Government and civil society.

It’s being published nearly 12 years on from the London Paralympic Games, which according to a report by Bournemouth University were seen to ‘destigmatise’ disability by ‘humanising’ through increasing the visibility of disability on television, improving forms of disability representation, and challenging non-disabled audiences’ understanding of what disabled people can do[v].

Another key figure driving the connections between OR and sport is Phil Scarf, Professor of Management Mathematics at Cardiff Business School. Speaking recently to the OR Society he also highlighted how OR techniques have been used in cycling, particularly in planning tactics for the Match Sprint event at the London 2012 Olympics.

Phil said: “The match sprint, a head-to-head race, exemplifies OR’s role in developing probabilistic models to inform tactical decisions. The race’s tactical dynamics involve strategic positioning on the track before a final sprint to the finish line, with slipstreaming playing a crucial role in reducing air resistance. By analysing video data and employing logistic regression, OR researchers can identify influential race variables and tactics, thereby guiding optimal strategies for cyclists that are leading, following, and leveraging slipstreaming to increase the probability of victory.”

Seb Hargreaves, Executive Director, The OR Society concludes: “As we look forward to Paris 2024 it’s exciting to see how OR can transform sports strategy. OR techniques are applied across a very diverse range of sports and can be a real game-changer. By optimising tournament designs, enhancing player performance, and addressing logistical and scheduling challenges, OR ensures that sports remain captivating for audiences worldwide, offering thrilling experiences for fans, athletes, and organisers alike.”

For more information on the OR Society visit: https://www.theorsociety.com

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