Scottish Rugby sign with Catapult to advance athlete monitoring and player development
Scottish Rugby has extended its supply agreement with the world leader in performance analytics, Catapult Sports, to track and improve athlete performance.
Scottish Rugby has been equipped with 110 additional devices designed to provide actionable feedback from training and games. The technology will be used by both the Scotland Men’s team and National Sevens team, as well as Scotland’s two professional clubs, Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors. Scottish Rugby has an existing relationship with Catapult, and this significant investment in extra technology shows their commitment to the future use of data in sport.
Catapult’s elite athlete tracking devices fit into a player’s sports vest and synchronise to the OpenField software platform which allows the user to analyse data in real-time and after each session. Each device contains multiple inertial sensors which collect close to 1,000 data points per second. This information is then used to monitor athlete output, helping coaches to optimise performance, mitigate injury risk and support rehabilitation processes; three uses that combine to ensure that players are more frequently available and ready to perform at their best.
The arrangement also includes the installation of Catapults’ ClearSky technology at two of its training/match-day facilities including Oriam, Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre. ClearSky is an innovative local positioning system that enables precise movement tracking regardless of environment. Independent from satellites, ClearSky delivers high-quality data both indoors and outdoors through a network of locally installed anchors, providing a greater level of insight into training sessions at Oriam.
Scottish Rugby and Catapult have also agreed to enter into a Research & Innovation relationship that will help support the global ambition within World Rugby of improving athlete and team performance at all levels.
The world leader in sports performance analytics, Catapult provides technology to over 1,500 teams around the world, including Saracens, Harlequins and the British and Irish Lions, as well as Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Ajax and LA Galaxy.
Stuart Yule, National Team Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, commented; “A critical determinant of rugby performance is the physical characteristics of the players. In a sport with ever increasing demands and competition, Catapult technologies provide meaningful and related information which enables continual improvement in players’ physical development and management. It is an exciting time to partner with Catapult based on the current insight provided on the demands of rugby. Catapult’s ambition for the future of its products, demonstrated by its roadmap, will continue to push the boundaries of our understanding of our sport allowing us to remain at the cutting edge of athlete development.”
Paul Boanas, Sales Director at Catapult added; “Having risen into the top five in the world in recent months, it is clear that Scotland are making huge progress on the international stage and we are thrilled to be part of that development. Catapult has been leading the way in rugby technology for over 10 years, and for this to be recognised by one of the world’s best teams through a competitive tender process is testament to the team behind the scenes at Catapult.”
Interested in joining Scottish Rugby in discovering what Catapult technology can do for your organisation? Click here to find out more.
Italian Rugby’s Technological Leap Ahead of the Six Nations
The Italian Rugby Federation is taking a significant technological leap by partnering with Catapult to harness advanced performance analysis technology for the Six Nations tournament. This initiative places Italy at the forefront with other leading rugby nations in integrating sophisticated tools to sharpen their competitive edge. The adoption of Catapult’s Vector Pro units signifies Italy’s commitment to improving performance and achieving excellence on the global stage. For an in-depth look at how this technology is transforming Italian Rugby, visit the blog.