The Sydney Morning Herald logo

Sports science

Advertisement
Youth sport is no longer mucking around and kids are getting injured and burning out.

Injuries, burnout, huge bills: Are pushy parents ruining children’s sport?

Too much pressure is being placed on kids to excel in elite sport, with the goal being Olympic gold, not enjoyment.

  • Jordan Baker

Latest

Anatomy swimming index

Inside the race and the rivalry that helped to define Arnie’s career

She held the world record. Lost it. Regained it. Lost the gold medal. And after conquering the world, it would be a teammate who emerged as Ariarne Titmus’s fiercest rival.

  • Tom Decent, Tommy Saputra and The Visual Stories Team
Origin players inhaling from buckets before the match.

The pungent potion that’s become a pre-match ritual in the NRL

Queensland team doctor Matthew Hislop has revealed the concoction inhaled by NRL players before they take to the field.

  • Frances Howe
Retired Olympic canoeist Alyce Wood at QSAC on Thursday.

Why these women believe today is ‘massive for sport in Australia’

The Australian Institute of Sport has announced a new national guide for sporting organisations to support pregnant athletes, and those planning to have children.

  • William Davis
James Slipper, Kieran Foran and Dayne Zorko composite

The evolution of sport science, and how it’s extending our athletes’ prime

Could 40 be the new 30? Adam Reynolds, Dayne Zorko, Kieran Foran and James Slipper are among those defying Father Time through advances in sport science.

  • Nick Wright
With matching double degrees in mechatronics and engineering, the 25-year-olds turn heads as they help design and build the Scitech Discovery Centre displays that engage minds young and old in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Formula one, two: Meet the Perth twins driving the next generation in STEM

With matching double degrees in mechatronics and engineering, the 25-year-olds turn heads with their Scitech Discovery Centre designs – including a rac car that hits 100km/h in four seconds.

  • Claire Ottaviano
Advertisement
Gong Lijiao, of China, competes in the final of the women’s shot put in Tokyo on Sunday.

It puts the ‘stronger’ in faster, higher, stronger. And the future is female

When it comes to the spirit of the Games, the shot put and discus thrower from Boring, Oregon (yes, really), puts the “stronger” into “faster, higher, stronger”. But how much stronger can humans get?

  • Billie Eder, Nathanael Scott and The Visual Stories Team
1500m

First came the four-minute mile. An Australian made the next biggest leap

A century of data shows how a deeper gene pool, better diets and fancy sneakers have made humans run faster. How much improvement is left?

  • Iain Payten, Nathanael Scott and The Visual Stories Team
100m anatomy

It’s quicker than any sport at the Games – but so much happens in less than 10 seconds

Don’t mistake the shortest race at the Olympics for a lack of complexity. Put one foot wrong and you’re gone.

  • Iain Payten, Tommy Saputra and The Visual Stories Team
High jump

It started with the ‘straddle’. Then a radical technique changed the sport forever

Two Australians are hoping to win gold. We explore how much higher they can jump, and how a stray backside or heel can bring down an Olympic dream.

  • Billie Eder, The Visual Stories Team and Nathanael Scott