(Video) The Greatest Goals Ever Scored #6: Johnny Metgod Nottingham Forest V West Ham 1985
By admin | March 31, 2011
A brand new CaughtOffside series with a catchy title and nice graphic. Is this the sweetest struck free-kick ever? The ball appears to be travelling at the speed of light and even though it was right at Phil Parkes, the Hammers legend could do nothing about it.

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Science of Sport awards: Sports science story of the year
By admin | January 21, 2012
Looking back on 2011, but through an academic lens, leaves the impossible task of trying to pick a research highlight. I guess in much the same way as your choice of a Sports Star of the Year would be influenced by your choice of sport (Messi, Djokovic, Cavendish or Wellington), the choice of most exciting or impactful sports science story of the year is heavily influenced by your particular focus within the sciences.
Similarly, within sports science, you may be heavily invested in physical activity and disease, molecular basis for injuries, applied physiology, or performance physiology.
My personal focus, at least during my PhD was fatigue, and specifically the role of the brain in the regulation of performance and pacing strategy. Therefore, my pick as the sports science story of 2011 is a series of studies out of Switzerland, which have provided the first evidence of how brain structures interact with one another during fatiguing exercise. To quote from the third of the three studies:
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to empirically demonstrate that muscle fatigue leads to changes in interaction between structures of a brain’s neural network
Background – the brain was clearly involved, but the “how” was missing
As I was finishing my PhD, the problem I encountered is that we were able to observe how performance and specifically pacing strategy was affected by various interventions (heat, high or low oxygen, energy supply, deception or manipulation of distance information), but we didn’t have the tools to measure the neural processes that were producing these changes.
Briefly, it was pretty clear that exercise performance was regulated by the brain, and over time, the theory evolved that the brain was monitoring all the physiological systems and ensuring that performance was optimized in the face of potentially limiting (or even harmful) changes in homeostasis. For example, it had been shown pretty clearly that when we hit a body temperature of around 40 degrees celsius, we stopped – limiting fatigue due to hyperthermia. Therefore, as soon as exercise was self-paced, the brain would monitor the rate at which the temperature was rising, and then regulate exercise intensity in order to prevent us from hitting this “limit” before the known end of exercise.
The same was true for exercise at altitude, with low glycogen stores, and when you lied to athletes about how much exercise remained – there was an anticipatory component to fatigue, so that fatigue was not merely the failure of physiology, but the process by which that potential failure (in performance, in this case), might be regulated.
The problem is that our ability to measure the neural contributions was limited. We were able to measure muscle activation levels, albeit crudely during dynamic exercise, but it gave a pretty clear picture of how the degree of muscle recruitment was altered by the brain over the course of exercise and with different situations. However, much had to be inferred from how power output or running speed changed as a function of changes in various physiological systems.
Therefore, at the conclusion of my PhD back in 2006, we had a theory, sometimes called the “central governor” model, which I believe accurately explained what was observed during exercise, but was in need of a mechanistic component. The theory began to evolve into the realms of philosophy (sometimes deliberate, other times out of ignorance). And one of the problems was this lent itself to gross misunderstandings. A very respected scientist came to me in Denver this year and mocked the theory because it meant there must “be a little man dancing around in your head telling you how to exercise”.
Of course, that is not part of any theory I’ve ever seen, but in the absence of measurements of brain function during exercise, it is, I suppose, the inevitable criticism. This lack of mechanistic explanation is one of the primary reasons that I looked elsewhere for future research, because we had taken our observations to a point where we had a model, a theory for how fatigue and physiology were inter-related, how pacing and performance were regulated, but we could not move beyond the hypothetical.
And so when, only a few months ago, a series of three studies on fatigue and the brain were published, it was an exciting breakthrough, the first, I suspect, of many, which will push the field of fatigue and exercise into the next phase of understanding.
The three studies: Building the model of fatigue
Science Daily have a really concise summary of the three studies, including some quotes from the scientists involved. I won’t rehash the translation of the science here, but rather direct you to their summary.
For those interested in the papers discussed in that article, they are at the followings links:
- Afferent pain information from the muscle contributes to inhibition of the motor cortex during fatiguing muscle contractions
- The thalamus and insular cortex are involved in regulating exercise in response to afferent information from the muscle
- Communication between brain areas during fatigue exercise
The studies are certainly a breakthrough, but by no means a complete picture. For example, the first of the three studies produces a similar finding to a body of work by Markus Ammann (not in 2011, but over the last 4 or 5 years), which have shown a similar role of afferent (feedback) information from the muscle to the brain. The motor output (think muscle activation) is clearly influenced by this information, which should be obvious as soon as one accept that fatigue, and therefore performance, are regulated in the same way that any system is (blood glucose, body temperature etc – there are sensors, there is feedback, there is an effector).
What is needed next is to move this technology on from isolated muscle contractions and onto dynamic exercise. The above studies all used pretty isolated exercise (handgrips or leg extensions), or they use EEG during cycling (in Study 3). When we can measure brain activity using fMRI in different regions of the brain during a 10km running time-trial, for example, then we will have some extremely powerful information.
That breakthrough may be coming – at my University, some colleagues have done some great work and are in fairly advanced stages of being able to measure brain activity using fMRI during cycling activity, and that should unlock more secrets – the video is below.
Next step – decoding the “lights” and making sense of data
Once this can be done, then it’s a matter of understanding what it all means. The field of neuroscience has long ago evolved from a “black box” approach to understanding brain function, towards an integrated model. The danger for sports science is that the same may happen. Indeed, it already exists – this mindset has been another source of criticism for the central governor, in that people seem to expect it to be a distinct anatomical structure. Even the approach to studying fatigue has probably been held back by too specific approach to what is clearly a multi-faceted, complex phenomenon.
The reality is that it’s far too complex for that, and only many years of research will build the picture of how the brain integrates such vast complexity to regulate performance in the obvious way that it does!
2011 may have provided the first steps, but they are the first of many!
Ross
Next time: Sports stars of the year
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Science of Sport awards: Teams of the year – Kenya & Barcelona
By admin | January 13, 2012
Welcome to 2012! It’s an Olympic year, the undoubted highlight of the year for us, but there are Tours, Marathons, meets and matches to cover and we are looking forward to the analysis, debate and discussion. We hit our three millionth visitor on New Year’s Eve, and we’re hoping for another million this year! Dollars, that is…!
I’m still forging on with the recap of 2011 (better late than never), only three to go, and then we’ll start looking ahead to 2012. And today, it’s Team of the Year, which is a shared award between Kenya (a pseudo-team, since athletics/running aren’t exactly team sports) and Barcelona.
Kenya – total dominance
2011 was the year of the marathon, and it was completely owned by Kenya. Not just dominated, but owned. The year-end lists show that the Top 20 times in the marathon were run by Kenyans. That’s right – all 20 were from Kenya. That list includes a new world record, and the winning performances from every major city marathon in 2011, and the World Championships marathon. Not only were the majors won by Kenyans, but the course records at every major city marathon were broken too. Not in that list are the incredible Boston marathon performances, where Mutai and Mosop ran 2:03:02 and 2:03:06 respectively, since those times are not eligible for official lists (the result of that, in case you are wondering, is that Ryan Hall’s 2:04:58 also doesn’t feature on that list – it’s the fastest performance by a non-Kenyan in 2011, but not official).
The result of this Kenyan dominance was that the average of the Top 10 performances was a staggering 2:05:00. That’s almost 40 seconds faster than the world record only nine years ago, and more athletes broke 2:07 in 2011 than ever before (25 did it – 24 were Kenyan, only dos Santos of Brazil is in that company. 2:06 was broken by 11 men, incidentally). In November, I analyzed the top performances and discussed the “seismic shift” that has occurred, along with some of the reasons behind it – worth a read for more detail.
Perhaps the most remarkable statistic was this one – 70 Kenyans ran faster over the marathon than the fastest European athlete. That was Oleksandr Sitkovskyy, a Ukranian who ran 2:09:26. Ryan Hall’s officially recognized performance from Chicago (2:08:04) is the second-fastest of the year by a non-African (dos Santos being first).
On the track, Kenya had one of their most successful campaigns ever. At the Daegu World Championships, Kenya finished third on the medal table, winning 7 golds, 6 silvers and 4 bronzes. The golds were won across the spectrum – Men’s 800, men’s 1500m, men’s steeplechase, men’s marathon, women’s 5000m, women’s 10000m and women’s marathon.
Only one missing accolade
The only area where Kenya have yet to figure out a solution to the Ethiopian riddle is the long track events for men. In the 10,000m in particular, Ethiopian men have shut Kenya out of gold since 1993. In fact, with the exception of Charles Kamathi’s gold in 2001, Ethiopian men have won every 10,000m gold since 1993 (admittedly, of the twelve golds won by Ethiopia in this stretch, 11 were shared between two men – Geb and Bekele!)
Unless Kenya can discover a 26:40 man with 52 second final lap closing speed in the next 6 months, that streak looks set to continue in London, though Mo Farah may have something to say about whether it’s an Ethiopian streak or just a ‘non-Kenyan’ one!
Other than this, however, it’s difficult to see Kenyan dominance being broken. 20 out of 20 in the marathon. Their gold medallists looked peerless in Daegu. And in Vivian Cheruiyot, they have the world’s best female athlete, one of the stars of London 2012 if she maintains her 2011 form. Kenya will therefore be the best performing African nation in London.
For the rest of the world, competing at the very highest level must feel futile. Hall flies the flag, as does Keflezighi, for the USA. The promise of Galen Rupp stepping up to the marathon will be interesting, since he brings 26:40-credentials to the road. That of course is one of the big reasons for the shift in marathon running – the entry of very fast, 26:40 men into the marathon before they have lost that speed. Mo Farah is the other athlete who will be looked at to challenge Kenya over the marathon one day.
The genetic vs training debate
The scientifically fascinating debate is whether this dominance is genetic or environmental. That’s an unnecessarily polarized question. To repeat a mantra I used a lot in 2011 – when someone wants to polarize an explanation into one of two things, they are always wrong. The reality is that the kind of dominance that has been achieved by Kenya is too complex to the result of one or two factors. If it was one, or even two-dimensional, then the world would imitate it very easily. The fascinating thought experiment would be to apply the same environmental factors (training, diet, altitude, culture, socio-economic factors) to a few groups around the world, over three or four generations, and see how successful they are. Of course, this experiment isn’t going to happen, so we speculate.
There’s no question that the pioneers of distance running in Kenya, the men who won Kenya’s first global medals in the 1960s, were the catalyst for a generation of young athletes who could now simply imitate and aspire to follow in their footsteps. Physical activity is a part of life in Kenya (not always running to and from school, I might add), and so is the desire to become a great runner. The economic incentives are enormous, there are sufficient competition structures to identify the most talented athletes, and a culture of success that is demonstrated by the 2011 marathon results – “he did it, why not me?”
But none of these factors, as well-described as they are, disprove that some genetic factor is also in play. The same ingredients applied elsewhere (because let’s face it, there are many other regions around the world with similar isolated factors) may not produce the same results. In a nation of 270 million people, for example, is there not a single athlete who has trained as hard as 100 Kenyans, with the same desire to succeed? Of course there will be, but the ceiling that can be reached is genetically influenced.
I am something of a believer in the role of genes in performance, as you may recall from our talent vs training debate. The failure of science to discover that gene, I believe, is more a function of genetic complexity combined with our limited ability to understand it. As mentioned in the genetic debate, it takes 300,000 gene variants to explain only 50% of something like height. Only 45% of training response can be explained by vast gene arrays. How much more complex might performance be?
2011 produced some of the first scientific evidence that the response to training was strongly influenced by genes. That is, it was found that individuals who had a certain number of specific genetic variants (called SNPs) were “high-responders”, whereas those who lacked these specific gene variants saw almost no change in their VO2max or performance after months of training (the “low responders”). You can read more on this study here. What hasn’t been done yet is to show whether these SNPs are present more in certain populations than in others. That’s the study that would show whether the probability of discovering a high responder (and thus potential great runner) is greater in some groups than others. Of course, as molecular methods improve, and genome-wide association studies become more powerful, these potential links will become clearer.
The fact that Jamaica and the USA dominate sprints and that east Africa dominate distance running is one of the most intriguing areas of exercise physiology. And exercise economics, when you look at things like incentives, culture, economic factors. The addition of genes to this mix is what makes Kenyan running so fascinating.
Until those answers are provided, we have only questions and theories. There’s no doubt however, about who the team to beat is in international running. The only question, for the rest of the world, is “How”?
Barcelona – changing the way coaches approach sport
The second winner of the Team of the Year award is Barcelona’s all conquering football team. On the surface, that’s an easy award to give out, because Barcelona have been exceptional. In 2011, they won the Champions League, Spanish League title, World Club Championships, and a host of other trophies, bringing to 12 (out of a possible 15) the number of titles they’ve won under coach Pep Guardiola.
The fascinating thing for me, at least from a sports science/management perspective, is the manner in which they have achieved this success. Yes, they have some of the greatest players in the world – the Player of the Year award title for 2010 (awarded in 2011) was a straight shootout between three Barca players in Lionel Messi, Xavi and Andres Iniesta (Messi won it). But the Barcelona “way” is so distinctive that it has begun to inspire coaches and sports administrators from other sports to want to imitate it.
Much has been written about the Barcelona style of football, and their now legendary youth academy, La Masia (one such story can be read here), which produced Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Puyol, Pique, Febregas, Busquets and Valdez of the current typical starting 11.
Barcelona’s movement off the ball, the positional awareness of the players, the work rate when not in possession, and the ability to manipulate space and defenders are the “buzzwords” that I’ve heard a great deal around the sport of rugby, for example! One rugby coach has expressed that it is his vision to be the “Barcelona of Sevens rugby”, such is the influence of Barcelona on other coaches.
And why not? Barcelona’s dominance has been complete and distinctive, technically speaking, to the point that their opposition have likened playing them to playing against Playstation figures. I’d be going beyond the limits of my own football knowledge to describe the technical characteristics of what the players learn at La Masia, and at the senior team, the specifics of what make them so remarkable.
The success of the club is again not the product of any single factor (in the same way that Kenyans aren’t great runners for one reason alone). So the Barcelona approach to youth development, their focus on skill and movement rather than size, strength and speed, and their desire to teach sportsmanship and creativity ahead of winning are only part of the mix. Not one of these factors should be viewed as a competitive advantage, however – they are all easily replicated, in theory anyway.
The youth academy concept is now so common in sports, particularly football and rugby, and many of the elements and principles are shared, at least on paper. The ethos of youth development is not unique, and nor is the attitude that “we invest in the person, not just the player”. This approach to youth-development is now accepted as best-practice, and every academy will have a code of conduct that dictates how young players are to be taught and managed. So again, simply following the “recipe” doesn’t guarantee the end-product.
The challenge for other coaches and sports administrators, even in sports like rugby, who want to imitate the Barcelona way, is to recognize how difficult it is to develop the culture that underscores the technical excellence and the on-field results.
Nevertheless, the Barcelona model will continue to be discussed, and attempts made to imitate it. It is the sincerest form of flattery. What we (the outsiders) see is the end result, which is sometimes breath-taking. The 5 goal demolition of Real Madrid in 2010, the 4-0 defeat of Santos in the Club World Championship final in December, and the defeat of Manchester United in the Champions League Final at Wembley are some of the highlights from Barcelona’s on-field “end product”. Whether the system can be reverse engineered, I have my doubts, but when a team is held up as the gold standard for how to play, then they’re worthy of “Team of the Year”.
Ross
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QPR Boss Mark Hughes Lines Up Tottenham Midfielder as First Loftus Road Signing
By admin | January 13, 2012
Newly installed Loftus Road manager readies move for White Hart Lane bench warmer.
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Queens Park Rangers are set to launch a bid for Tottenham midfielder Steven Pienaar, Sky Sports understands.
The South African schemer has become disillusioned with the lack of first-team chances at White Hart Lane.
Pienaar moved to Tottenham 12 months ago from Everton, but has started less than 10 league games in that time.
Now the 29-yaer-old is ready to quit the club and a number of sides have already shown an interest in taking him.
Former club Everton and Sunderland were strongly linked, but Sky Sports understands Qpr are ready to emerge as favourites by making a firm offer.
SOURCE: Sky Sports
Steven Pienaar’s career has definitely stagnated since his move to White Hart Lane and a move to Loftus Road may well help to re-ignite the winger’s career. The former Everton man moved to North London a year ago on the cheap as his Toffees deal was set to expire but any hope of a regular spot in Harry Redknapp’s first team has long since been extinguished and clearly Spurs are managing very well without the South African playing a role in the starting eleven.
Mark Hughes has been handed a large transfer war-chest and a move for the 29 year old wouldn’t take up much of those funds and the experienced attacker could well add a new dimension in the final third that may help to steer the West London side away from the drop zone.
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Bawful After Dark: January 12, 2012
By admin | January 13, 2012

Some good news for you today. Andrei Kirilenko is interested in coming back to the NBA next season. That’s great news — we’re a little short on our quota of ugly guys with awesome nicknames.
Worst of the Night in Pictures:



Nationally Televised Games:
Knicks at Grizzlies, TNT, 8:00pm: A Mike D’Antoni team has been playing something resembling defense lately? Did I wake up in an episode of the Twilight Zone again?
Magic at Warriors, TNT, 10:30pm: Kwame Brown is out for at least three months with a torn pectoral muscle. The Warriors are doomed!
A few thoughts. First, of course he hurt himself fouling. Now, obviously, their only hope now is to sign Greg Ostertag to replace him. (My fingers are crossed so hard, you guys) And finally Trey Kerby made, in my opinion, the greatest possible joke about this situation: “Did you know — Kwame Brown tore his pectoral muscle patting himself on the back for how great his post defense is in practice.”
All The Other Games:
Bobcraps at Hawks, 7:30pm: Al Horford is out for at least three months with a torn pectoral muscle. Wait, didn’t I just type that? (looks up) Yes, Al Horford has a similar injury to Kwame. Let’s hope the similarities end there. Anyway, the Hawks just got even more Hawksy.
Pistons at Bucks, 8:00pm: Who’s ready for a shootout??? Neither of these teams! The final score has to be something like 78-75, right?
Cavaliers at Suns, 9:00pm: Cleveland’s seven-game road trip continues. A nice little stat: Antawn Jamison has lost eight consecutive games against the Suns. However, to be fair the first six of those were while he was with Washington, so those probably shouldn’t count.
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Rugby World Cup: The ref debate
By admin | October 29, 2011
Rugby World Cup: New Zealand’s drought ends and rugby’s referee problem
The stats reveal this – South Africa had 131 rucks, compared to Australia’s 44. That is, for every one opportunity for South Africa to contest and slow down Australian ball, there were three chances for Australia to do so. So, by allowing too much contesting, the referee effectively gave Australia three times as many chances to push the limits of what was legal (and some would say exceed those limits).
Especially when the passions of die-hard fans are involved. Just ask any referee…
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