{"id":14541,"date":"2012-08-02T23:01:06","date_gmt":"2012-08-02T15:01:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?p=14541"},"modified":"2025-04-21T17:46:12","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T09:46:12","slug":"london-olympics-technology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/london-olympics-technology\/","title":{"rendered":"Discover the Hidden Tech of London 2012 Olympics"},"content":{"rendered":"

No, this is not about the technology behind you being able to watch the live stream<\/a> of events from the comforts of your laptop without paying a cent. It\u2019s also not about the apps involved in getting you the latest medal counts, broken records, or controversial calls. This post is about the technology used in the Olympic Games<\/strong> themselves \u2013 the ones that help give you the best view of each dive, jump, and fall, and help keep technicalities and results in check.<\/p>\n

The Olympics may be about the spirit of competition, but with a little help from science and technology, the games can be solely about the athletes\u2019 performance. From timekeeping to camera technologies, photo cells to awesome 3D replays, this post will reveal some of the coolest technology that helps keep the Olympic Games running smoothly and keeps you at the edge of your seat.<\/p>\n

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Time Is of the Essence<\/h2>\n

Ever wonder how they figure out who wins in swimming races? It\u2019s not like you can take a photo finish, and since water splashes, that makes it even tougher. But not when electronic timekeeper brand Omega has something to do with it.<\/p>\n

The Swiss timepiece maker carries huge responsibilities in determining who takes the gold medal home in mega sports events like the Olympics. And they do this with a lot of technology, including \u201ccontact pads.\u201d<\/p>\n

Four Fingers and 6.6 Pounds<\/h3>\n

Whenever you see swimmers finishing up the last lap, it all becomes a blur, and spectators there and at home refer to the scoreboard to find out who won. Each swimmer\u2019s best time is registered by the contact pads once 6.6 pounds of focused pressure is applied to the pad<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This technology is so sensitive that the pads could register a time difference of one one-hundredth (0.01) of a second, which was exactly what gave U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps the gold (and an Olympic record of 50.58 seconds) during the 100-metre butterfly event in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.<\/p>\n

\n \"London
Image source: Picture of the year International<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

From Start to Finish<\/h3>\n

In track events, even the starting gun and the finishing line are electronically timed. Once the starter pistol is shot to start the race, a timing console is also triggered, mainly to detect false starts.<\/p>\n

A false start is determined when the runner starts at less than a tenth of a second, the time it takes for a human to react to the starting pistol.<\/p>\n

\n \"London
Image source: Omega<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On the other end of the race, when the runners reach the finishing line, they will pass a laser beam that cuts across the track. This beam is received by a light sensor on the other side of the track.<\/p>\n

When a runner blocks this beam, the time is recorded, and as there are two photo cells placed at different heights to measure this, this will ensure that the runner\u2019s torso (and not an arm) crossed the finishing line first<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Photo finish cameras complete the rigorous measures taken to determine who wins the race, as well as give judges and spectators a look into how technology can showcase the competitiveness of athletes in sports. With 2000 frames per second, there can be no question as to who takes which medals home.<\/p>\n

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Smile, You\u2019re on DiveCam!<\/h2>\n

But what about that camera at diving events, the one that follows the divers as they make their somersaults and drop in through the surface of the water? It\u2019s actually an invention called the DiveCam<\/a>, and it\u2019s not as high-tech as you\u2019d like to believe. It works with two things: a pulley system and, believe it or not, gravity.<\/p>\n

\n \"London
Image Source: The Wall Street Journal \u2013 Sports<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The man responsible for the DiveCam, Garrett Brown, is also the maker of SteadyCam \u2013 a mechanical arm that gives cameras that smooth moving run \u2013 and SkyCam \u2013 the camera that gives you the overhead view of football players as they run the field.<\/p>\n

The Contraption<\/h3>\n

With DiveCam, the camera is placed inside a 50-foot long tube (yes, it\u2019s that out-of-place flattened tube to the side of the diving boards) that extends well under the surface of the water.<\/p>\n

The cameraman times the diver as they leave the springboard, then drops the camera as the diver makes his or her descent. Based on laws of physics, the diver and the camera should drop at the same time, giving spectators a perfect view of the dive as it happens.<\/p>\n

A brake system stops the camera from breaking from impact, and it is pulled back up for the next dive.<\/p>\n

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Time-Slicing: The Coolest Instant Replay<\/h2>\n

Also in the mix is the Matrix-effect replays of gymnasts in mid-air. While I haven\u2019t been able to pinpoint a video of this effect that is available for all, if you have been watching the gymnastics event, you would have seen these awesome 3D replays, which is something like what you see below<\/a>.<\/p>\n