View From the Editor: Your 2012 'Plaice' or mine? - May 2005  

Readers, can you believe that S&T is two years old this month? It seems like only yesterday that we were recklessly ripping the knees on our jeans while shinning up our neighbours’ trees scrumping for apples. Oh hang on, that was only yesterday. We do like to crunch on a good Cox’s Pippin at ArkSports Towers, although sometimes we treat ourselves to a Braeburn or two. Crazy fruit-obsessed kids that we are!
This time last year we wrote about how S&T joined an elite sports federation – FIBBS (the International Federation of Serious Sports Drinkers/Federation Internationale des Buveurs Sportifs Seriuex). S&T is glad to report therefore that following a large top up of liver-cleansing milk thistle, FIBBS was alive and thriving at April’s SportAccord in Berlin, with 2012 gossip being firmly on the agenda at the annual meeting (as well as the usual insertion of fingers up noses etc).
All five 2012 host cities were in the German capital to present their bids to members of GAISF (General Association of International Sports Federations), ASOIF (Association of Summer Olympic International Federations) and AIOWF (Association of the International Olympic Winter Sports Federations), as well as the IOC Executive Board and no doubt a few other acronyms, at what was a very buzzy SportAccord indeed. A veritable array of technology was used as part of the pitches by no less than five Mayors (there must be a collective noun opportunity there; a ‘bluff’ of Mayors perhaps). Some technology worked better than others depending on whether videotape or DVD was the poison of choice, but what was of more interest to S&T was the use of technology during the recent evaluation commission visits by the IOC. The Paris 2012 team in particular was only too happy to talk to S&T about its virtual zoom technology – a positively aerial/3D feast – which we have reviewed separately in this issue.
S&T caught up with SportAccord president and acting president of GAISF, Hein Verbruggen, after the bid presentations and asked him how important he feels catering for technology needs is to an Olympic bid. Verbruggen is also vice chairman of the Beijing Olympic Broadcasting Corporation you see, although, as he confessed to S&T, his own use of technology pretty much only extends to starting his own car in the morning. “Technology is of course extremely important to a bid,” he said. “Technology speaks for itself in terms of how crucial it is to a Games and planning and preparation is everything.”

Credit: Empics

Lord Sebastian Coe was of course in Berlin to promote the London 2012 bid in his role as chairman. Therefore, imagine S&T’s surprise to find ourselves in the same town as him the following week as well. This being the (slightly) less salubrious surroundings of Kidderminster in midland England. S&T was there to watch our idol, Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor, 12-times world darts champion, in a round of the Premier League of darts. Although we did not spot Seb at the actual arrows itself, we cannot believe that his presence in the small town was mere coincidence, but rather, further proof of darts’ potential as a future Olympic sport. Game on!
But as usual, we digress. Back to Berlin, and technology reared its cheeky head during a couple of the SportAccord conference sessions, with Michael Payne, erstwhile marketing director of the IOC and now cosily shacked up with Formula One Management as special advisor to chairman/CEO Bernie Ecclestone, commenting on the motorsport’s recent first tender for mobile rights. “When you look at what you are offering, video clips are just the tip of the iceberg,” he said. “There’s a growing realisation from television that something, if correctly managed, will add value rather than steal an audience. If you are not there, then in 10 years time you will see a drop in your fanbase.” Added Andy Elliot, head of sport at PA Sport: “Mobile offers sports a personal relationship with their customers. There is still a huge appetite for data, but people will want more than that. It’s down to the sports to differentiate themselves.” Claude Ruibal, president and CEO of the World Championship Sports Network, saw it as being even more basic than that when it comes to individual sports. He recently carried out a survey of websites of all the major international sports federations and pointed out that many were sorely lacking in the basics. “There are definitely opportunities to drive more consumers to their sites and provide a lot more information and value,” he said.
S&T is happy to report that we didn’t end up in hospital at this year’s SportAccord (the scar is still there from Lausanne last year), but we did get thrown out of a private IOC and ‘Gold Sponsor’ party for not having the right credentials. Excellent, our reputation remains intact, thank goodness.

Exeter City misses out again, sob

Regular readers of View From the Editor who haven’t been slavishly following our beloved Exeter City’s progress at the end of the soccer season here in the UK (and if not, why not), will be saddened to hear that, just like last year, we missed the play-offs by a single point. Curses. However, we do get to play an Italian Masters team later this month at the Real St James’ Park – as well as a team from the New York Fire Department. Not many non-league soccer clubs can boast hosting the Brazilian 1994 World Cup squad, an Italian Masters side featuring Pierluigi Casiraghi and Manchester United all within a 12 month period, and also have a team of strapping young men in tight shorts on site in case of flame-grilled burger mayhem and mishap in the catering vans. Still loving the Exeter City. We are so going up next year. We promise.

Fishy business

Our favourite new sport and technology invention was spotted advertised in a national UK newspaper on the way back from Exeter’s last match of the season in Carlisle. Imagine driving 300 miles, to win a match by 2,0 and still miss the play-offs by a point. Well, fortunately, the joy of potentially owning a ‘Sonar Fish Finder’ restored merriment to the travelling supporters, and all was well again in sunny Devon.
The ‘Sonar Fish Finder’ is a ‘portable fish finder with monitor and alarm, ideal for fishing whilst [sic] in the boat’. Looking much like a PDA with a game of battleships taking place (i.e. the fish), the device plots all the fish in the vicinity of said Sonar Fish Finder, as far down in the water as a staggering 24m. We kid you not!
Now call S&T a kill-joy, but knowing where the fish are before you dip your rod in the water surely (wait for the pun) flies in the face of fishing? Unless the device is being aimed (or should that be cast) at a new breed of anglers who can no longer justify an entire day and night sitting on the banks of a murky river, waiting for the merest nip of a passing trout. We can see the marketing collateral. “New device allows anglers to catch a fish within 5 minutes and still get home in time for the footy.” Perfect. We’re all busy folk these days after all.
Which reminds us that we have run out of time on this column and have large quantities of birthday cake and freshly scrumped apples to consume. Toodle pip until next month dear Readers!

Rachael Church – Editor

Do you prefer Cox’s Pippins or Braeburn apples? Or do you prefer to chomp on other types of fresh fruit? If you have any comments or feedback on this article or any of the features in S&T, we would be delighted to hear from you. Please e-mail your comments to editor@sportandtechnology.com.

This article was seen first by people who receive the monthly newsletter, join them.