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GPSports Systems:

GPSports Clients dominate their respective leagues on multiple continents.

Congratulations to GPSports clients Geelong Football Club (AFL) and Manly Rugby League Football Club (NRL) for completing impressive wins in their respective Grand finals over the weekend.

Add to these recent wins the QLD Reds 2011 Super 15 champions and Brisbane Roar 2011 A-League champions and GPSports clients have dominated all leagues in Australia in 2011.

Abroad, GPSports clients Manchester United FC's 2011 Premier League win and Barcelona FC's 2011 UAFA Champion success highlights that GPSports has the best of the best clients around the globe because of our superior innovative technology.

If you would like to know more, please contact us today.

News:


	Off the Wall ( Aug 10 20:35 ) Today's news that technology that will end referees missing forward passes, and calls forward passes that are not forward, will be available next year will be treated with scepticism by some, and alarm by many. But before we say "oh no, not more delays" we need to consider whether this may well be the very technology we should be embracing. I have two main complaints about the use of the video referee to rules on tries. Firstly, the replays on replays policy of most video referees has overwhelmed the "benefit of the doubt" rule that should ensure reasonably quick rulings. Secondly the video referee cannot rule on forward passes, even when they are glaringly obvious. That leads to justifiable complaints that we simply don't have a fool proof system when it comes to adjudicating on tries. And it unquestionably leads to referees "correcting" later in the game when they find out a try has to be awarded off a forward pass the missed. Today's story relates to a technology GPSports Systems is developing that will enable a micro chip to be inserted in Steeden footballs, used by the NRL, and will send a signal to the video referee within a quarter of a second if, when passing the ball, a player propels it forward. If that technology is confirmed, and found to be relatively fool proof, and confirmed that a decision can be made in a matter of seconds, it needs to be considered. There will be a debate about whether it should be used right throughout the game, or used when determining whether a try has been scored. And, who knows, we may soon have follow up technology that will enable us to abolish sideline officials, otherwise known as touch judges! I know we have to exercise caution when it comes to the use of technology, given that we are arguably well ahead of every other sports in its use already. But the use of a micro chip inside a football would address one of our biggest problems - forward passes - without slowing up play unnecessarily. If it is proven to be reliable, we should not hesitate to embrace it. ( More... ) NRL football with GPS passes fan test ( Aug 10 20:33 ) THE NRL is under pressure to adopt GPS microchip technology after fans and some NRL coaches threw their support behind the revolutionary idea yesterday. More than two thirds of fans in a Daily Telegraph online poll yesterday said the idea should be implemented by the NRL to eradicate referee blunders on forward passes. The Telegraph yesterday revealed GPSports Systems are developing technology capable of ensuring more accurate referee decisions by inserting a small microchip and battery inside Steeden footballs. In a strong sign of approval from fans, 1010 voters of the total 1517 respondents in the online poll said it was a good idea, following recent blatantly incorrect referee decisions, including Tigers captain Robbie Farah's forward pass to Blake Ayshford last Friday - which ultimately cost Manly the game. Knights coach Rick Stone and Cronulla coach Shane Flanagan support the idea. Stone said the NRL has to consider using the technology from the opening round of the 2012 season. "Anything that is going to give us more consistency in decisions has to be looked at," Stone said yesterday. "We've got to look at the technology if it's going to give us the right decisions. "Every coach has had a decision go against them and every coach has had a decision go their way, so it's probably evened itself out in the end. Referees can't always be in the right decision. This might be able to help them." Flanagan said his support for the idea is conditional on the technology only being used by video referee's ruling on potential tries. Flanagan also raised the idea of NRL coaches being given "challenges" to use video reviews if they believe referees have made an incorrect call. A similar system is used in cricket and tennis. The technology can obviously help, but I'm just concerned we might have to wait too long to get a decision," Flanagan said. "If someone throws a forward pass and the referee has to wait a couple seconds before making a ruling, a lot can happen in that time. But if play is already stopped then let the technology be available to the video ref. If they can get that right, I think it could be good for the game." ( More... ) Plan to use GPS technology in NRL footballs to track forward passes ( Aug 10 20:25 ) CRICKET has its Eagle Eye, Snickometer and Hot Spot. Tennis has Hawk-Eye. Swimming has electronic sensors in the pool, athletics has photo finishes. Rugby league has got its video referees to judge offside, foul play, grounding of the football and just about everything else - except for forward passes. Now one of Australia's leading sports technology companies, GPSports Systems, is developing cutting-edge software that will ensure an accurate ruling on forward passes from next season. It works like this ... a micro chip and battery (the size of small finger nail) is included in the layering of Steeden footballs for NRL use only. A signal is sent via satellite to computer grid in the video referee's box within a quarter of a second. A computer alarm or beep will sound if the ball is propelled forward from a player's hands - not for passes that have been directed backwards but float forward. The video referees will alert on-field officials in a process that takes just a few seconds and will not interfere or slow down the run of play. GPSports System spokesman Damien Hawes declined to go into great detail about his invention because the company is still in the process of getting a patent on the device. However, he did say: "I can confirm we'll have a positional system for the football that will get down to a centimetre for accuracy and reliability of where the ball moves on the field. Our staff have been working on it for some time because it has to be robust enough to handle kicking, passing, impact in tackles and players falling on it. "It's something we will take to the NRL during the off-season. "There is no question it will help on the adjudication of forward passes." Referees boss Bill Harrigan concedes at least six tries have been allowed this season from forward passes and that others have been called back from legitimate passes. One blatant miss - when Robbie Farah passed 1m forward to Blake Ayshford in Gosford last Friday night - cost Manly the game and possibly a $100,000 bonus that comes with the minor premiership. "Considering the number of tries scored, it's a small percentage, " Harrigan said. "But if anyone can show us technology that is going to help our guys, I'm all for it. Umpires and referees in other sports like cricket and tennis are getting help all the time." Channel 9 has welcomed the innovation and wants it to be part of their television broadcasts next season. "It would be a fantastic thing for television," said Nine's sports technology guru Brad McNamara. "It will tell you exactly what angle the ball leaves a player's hands within a quarter of a second. The fans will love it and it will take enormous pressure off referees." A spokesperson for Steeden, whose footballs are made in India, said manufacturing a football with a sensor was a possibility and said the company looked forward to having talks with GPS experts. "It's definitely something we could look in to," brand and marketing manager Leah Curtis said. "It's something that could be included in the layering of the ball. The mechanics would have to ensure it didn't affect the performance of the football." Harrigan said he was looking forward to being shown the new technology that could be trialled in the All Stars match in February and other pre-season matches."If this sort of technology was available and it takes pressure off the referees, I'd be all for it," he said. "If it can happen without impacting on the continuity of the game, it's something I'd love to look at." NRL boss David Gallop said of the plan: "If it works then we would consider it - tracking devices used in cricket and tennis are terrific. Anything that is going to help our game and help our referees is worth looking at." ( More... )

GPSports� tracking and analysis technologies are being used throughout the world to improve elite team sport performance.

GPSports has a limited number of fully refurbished SPI 10 units now available for only $600.00/unit.

Each unit comes with its own charging/download USB cable, AMS analysis software, heart rate strap, arm band and carry case. Each unit has an LCD display allowing users to view their performance live whilst exercising. If you would like to know more about this offer please contact GPSports via email (GPSports SPI 10 Offer).

Research:


	Application Of GPS Technology To Assess The Demands In Soccer Competition At College-Aged Level. Fernando Ayllon, David Viejo-Romero, Alfonso Jim�nez, Brent Alvar NSCA Conference � Las Vegas July 8-11 2009 PURPOSE: The main objective of this study was to describe and quantify the total distance crossed by a group of the College-aged Soccer players during different competition matches, differentiating between the positions in field (defense, midfielder and forward). As second objective, we compare the distance measures in this category with those registered in first class soccer Spanish players (Spanish League and European Champions League). METHODS: 10 male college-aged soccer players led a global positioning satellite (GPS) device (SPI Elite) for 14 league matches of the season 2008/2009. These devices can measure the distance and calculate the running speed and acceleration made by each player along the match RESULTS: There were 140 entries total. The average distance completed by all players without differentiating the position was 8902.53 +/- 250.4 m, with a range between 7963.5 m and 11161.6 m. When the sample was classified by the position, midfield players completed 9271.34 +/- 130.99m (p <0.05), an 8% increase over the defense players (8565.6 +/- 309.5 m) and 4% compared to the forwards players (8870.6 +/- 871.0m), with no significant differences identified between the last two groups (p> 0.05). The distance completed by collegeaged soccer players was significantly lower (p <0.05), than the distance registered from elite level players (Spanish League and European Champions League), where midfield players run 12008.5 +/- 776 m (+22%), the defense players 11405.3 +/- 893 m (+25%) and the forwards players 11254 +/- 894 m (+21%) CONCLUSION: Our results are similar to the data showed by other studies which had used other tools, as cameras and tracking system (computerized tracking system) regarding the distance crossed by grade or competition level. Independently of the competition level, the midfielders covered the major distance during the matches. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The midfielder will require greater attention to Conditioning, especially for the specific endurance capacity, to enable them to cope with the game demands. ( More... ) The use of Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking devices to assess movement demands and impacts in Under-19 Rugby Union match play RACHEL E. VENTER, EBEN OPPERMAN AND SIMON OPPERMAN Department of Sport Science, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1 Matieland, 7602 South Africa; E-mail: rev@sun.ac.za Abstract This study attempted to use Global Positioning System (GPS) devices to obtain information on elite Under-19 rugby union forward and back players with regard to selected movement patterns, as well as impacts from collisions experienced by players. Seventeen Under-19 male rugby players from a provincial rugby institute in Stellenbosch, South Africa, were studied during five games in a Super League A competition. Data revealed that players covered on average 4469.95 � 292.25 m during a game. Players spent 72.32 � 4.77% of the total game time either standing or walking. Props and locks spent more time jogging (26.11 � 3.77%), compared to outside backs (15.6 � 2.3%). The outside backs spent more time sprinting (1.11 � 1.18%) than inside backs (0.72 � 0.30%) or the front and back row forwards (0.48 � 0.23% and 48 � 0.13%) respectively. Back row forwards had the highest total amount of impacts (measured in G-force, g) during the games (683.4 � 295.04). The inside backs experienced the highest amount of severe impacts (>10g) (12.16 � 3.18) per match. The intermittent nature of Under-19 rugby union match play, as well as the unique roles and requirements of positional groups, were confirmed. The use of GPS technology also offered valuable insight into the severity of impacts experienced by players in different positions, which was not previously available. An understanding of match-play requirements, as well as the number and intensity of collisions experienced by players, can assist coaches with planning specific training programmes, as well as adequate recovery between training sessions and games. (Click here for full article) ( More... ) Walking for fitness: is it enough to maintain both heart and bone health? G. Waddington (A,E), T. Dickson (B), S. Trathen (C) and R. Adams (D) (A) Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia. (B) Faculty of Business and Government, University of Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia. (C) Faculty of Arts and Design, University of Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia. (D) Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Lidcombe, NSW 2141, Australia. (E) Corresponding author. Email: gordon.waddington@canberra.edu.au Abstract. Exercising at levels of whole body accelerations exceeding 3.6 g has been shown to have positive effects on cardiovascular fitness, bone density and balance. This pilot research project evaluated the whole body accelerations and cardiovascular challenge provided by selected walks in the Canberra region of Australia to determine if walks could be ranked according to potential level of impact on both cardiovascular fitness and bone health. Nine participants, who described themselves as walking at least 3 km, three times per week, wore a data logging device (GPSports SPI Elite) recording heart rate, acceleration and GPS position while walking three outdoor tracks: (1) the running track of an athletics stadium; (2) on a hill climb path through bushland; and (3) on a route through suburban streets. There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) for heart rate, distribution of whole body accelerations and average walking speed between track 2 and tracks 1 and 3. There was a significant difference for heart rate, distribution of whole body accelerations and average walking speed between the walks. The running track and the suburban walk provide a moderate exercise challenge, with the hill climb walk providing progressively greater vertical height challenge, resulting in an increased cardiovascular exercise challenge. No participant effectively exceeded the threshold for achieving a positive impact on bone density (100 or more accelerations/day >3.6 g) on track 1, and only two of the nine participants intermittently achieved this threshold on tracks 2 and 3. (Click here for full article) ( More... )