Show Notes
How is data used in sport? Katie Smith investigates the growing use of and reliance on data in sport, as part of a new four-part podcast series on what goes into helping athletes and teams perform at an elite level, made in partnership with The Open University. There’s a visit to an England Golf training camp at their headquarters in Lincolnshire to hear from rising golf star Lottie Woad on how data has helped improve her game and from Steve Robinson, England Golf national women’s performance coach, on how data can help with coaching. Dr Ben Langdown from the Open University explains what is measured as golfers look for an edge and the potential pitfalls of data, while Dr Nichola Kentzer explains some of the ethical dilemmas around the use of data. What role does data have in cycling? Olympic gold medallist Geraint Thomas explains why he still sees the sport as an art form and he doesn’t rely on the data too much but rather the feelings in his legs. Ineos Head of Innovation and Performance Support Mehdi Kordi reveals how everything can be measured in cycling. Plus, Liverpool FC’s former Director of Research, Ian Graham shares how football clubs can gain an edge through using data but cautions that football is the hardest sport to analyse data in. He also explains how he sold former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp on the merits of data as the club built the team that ended their 30 year wait for a Premier League title. The Team behind the Team is produced in partnership with the Open University. Team Ineos Grenadiers staff member David Rozman does not feature in this series and he was never interviewed or offered for interview during the process of gathering material for the series. Our production team was unaware of historical doping allegations relating to David Rozman and the 2012 season, which they have since been made aware of following the recording of this series.
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Over the past six years, participation levels for Padel in the UK have gone from 15,000 to one million. The number of courts in Britain has risen from just 68 in 2019, to over 2,200 today. So why is it so popular? Does it have a long-term future? And is it at risk of pricing people out, at the expense of other sports? Mark Chapman and Jason Manford try and answer all those questions and more, as they take a deep dive into the UK’s fastest growing sport. To help them answer all those queries are some experts including; Sandy Farquharson, GB Padel coach, Catherine Rose a GB Padel player and seven-time major doubles champion Jamie Murray - who is now an investor in Game4Padel who have 27 venues across the UK. And if you’re still not entirely sure what Padel is – the experts will explain all of that too.
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After returning to Grand Slam doubles action for the first time in four years at this year's US Open, what better time to reflect on the three-decade long careers of Venus and Serena Williams? Earlier this year Russell Fuller sat down with his predecessors as BBC Tennis Correspondent, Jonathan Overend and Iain Carter, to reflect on the Williams sisters’ careers. The trio discuss everything from Venus' rapid rise before the arrival of her sister, to Serena's inevitable dominance & her sometimes spiky relationship with the media. Timecodes 07:21 Anti-climactic finals between them, & suspicion around pre-arranged matches 11:01 Their dominance in the doubles 13:28 Serena wins & holds all four grand-slams, beating Venus in every Final 15:41 Serena's will to win & was she a particularly bad loser? 18:35 Health problems for both sisters in 2011 19:25 Serena's partnership with Patrick Mouratoglou, & chasing the Margaret Court record 24:14 Russell's sole interview with Serena in 2018
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