Next week’s Ultimate Championship in Budapest will have distinct format and style changes from traditional track meets that viewers will likely notice instantly, while a new piece of technology is set to revamp the action in the field.
Building on research that started at last year’s world championships in Tokyo, TDK unveiled its smart javelin sensor on Tuesday that can track and analyze data in real time during each throw in a live competition.
The technology giant partnered with World Athletics Championships to help understand how to capture and display data points that would otherwise never be seen. The motion, path and landing spot can easily be watched in a stadium or broadcast while a graphic shows the distance traveled, but the main aim of the research was to “enhance understanding” of the javelin event.
With the information gathered last September in Tokyo, TDK refined its original sensor prototype and in a demonstration at the Ultimate Championship, top throwers like Rumesh Tharanga, Keshorn Walcott, Máté Horváth, Fanni Kövér and Máté Járvás will be among the first to show off the improved technology.
The session will be staged on September 11 at the training and warm-up venue at the National Athletics Centre with each test javelin fitted with sensors that will collect release angle, rotation, speed, height and flight trajectory data, which can be interpreted in real time by technicians and displayed in a way that would be easier for spectators to grasp.
Meanwhile, the continued development of the sensor technology could eventually be part of an actual competition if governing bodies like World Athletics allow the device to be included on official equipment. While the sensor is about the same width of a javelin and lightweight, it is noticeably attached on the outside instead of being embedded.
TDK said that the javelin technology is part of its larger initiative to deploy sensors in a host of solutions, including those outside of sports like an assisted cane to help visually impaired people navigate their surroundings easier.
The Japanese electronics manufacturer has been a longtime partner of World Athletics since 1983 at the first edition of the world championships in Helsinki. Over the years, the relationship evolved into working on projects that use technology to gain insights into athlete performance. In 2019, TDK continued its connection with the governing body in a deal that extends until 2029.
