Nobody knows better than Martin Kusserow and Marc Bächlin as to exactly what was going on inside Simon Ammann before, during and after his winning jumps at the Winter Olympics in Whistler. After all, the two PhD students under professor of electronics Gerhard Tröster from ETH Zurich’s Wearable Computing Lab have the Swiss ski jumper’s data in their computer. ETH-Zurich sports psychologist and Simon Ammann’s mental trainer, Hanspeter Gubelmann, had asked the researchers for their help in preparing for the Winter Olympics. Using miniature sensors worn on the skin, the PhD students have been monitoring Ammann’s heart activity and movement patterns during training and World Cup competitions since last November. Gubelmann successfully incorporated the researchers’ findings into the ski jumper’s training program for the Games, including the two gold medal-winning jumps in Vancouver: probably for the first time ever in the history of the top-level sport, precise physiological data was successfully recorded for two Olympic victories. “We analyzed the star ski jumper’s mental fitness – his so-called activation – and compared it with before, during and after a competition or training session”, explains Martin Kusserow. One indicator of the activation is the electrical activity of the heart, which is recorded using a miniaturized ECG sensor. Ski jumpers have to be able to perform at their peak in the blink of an eye, as the whole jump – from the approach down the take-off ramp to the landing – is over in a matter of seconds. Rising to the challenge in such a short space of time requires activation prior to the jump.

Ammann’s unseen companion

Simon Ammann wears the sensor, which only weighs ten grams, on his chest like an electrode during an ECG test. An acceleration sensor is also integrated, continually recording the athlete’s movements. “For us, the crucial thing was not to affect Simon’s performance with the sensor”, says PhD student Martin Kusserow. Consequently, during a measurement period Ammann wears the sensor from dawn till dusk. “By the time the competition got underway, he’d completely got used to it and didn’t even know it was there anymore.” Moreover, this also means the scientists can monitor the athlete throughout the day of the competition – from the rest phase and his preparation in the run-up to the contest to the actual jump itself. The scientists use the data obtained to ascertain which activation areas the sportsman is in when and for how long. Knowing which activation patterns propelled Ammann to his Olympic triumph will not only help top athletes prepare for competitions in the future, but also up-and-coming sportsmen and women as well.