▲ Customized equipment for shooting athletes (left) and real-time posture analysis
Ahead of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games opening on September 19, the Korea Institute of Sports Science under the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation has announced a customized sports science support plan for national team athletes.
The most notable aspect is the precision support tailored to each sport using advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and 3D motion analysis.
For shooting, the institute provides precise diagnosis per athlete through 2D and 3D muzzle vibration analysis and posture estimation-based fault analysis, while manufacturing customized firearm components for individual athletes using 3D scanners.
For the national badminton team, it analyzes and provides opponents' patterns, moving distances, and stroke locations using new AI-based algorithms.
In field hockey, advanced science combining AI, real-time match analysis, GPS, drones, and muscle strength measurement equipment is utilized to assist players.
In swimming (diving/aquatics), key variables such as takeoff speed, angle, and distance are analyzed by measuring start markers based on 3D motion analysis.
In addition, support strategies have been categorized into three stages based on the performance levels of each sport.
First is "strengthening the stability of medal-dominant sports."
For existing medal events (such as archery recurve, fencing sabre, and taekwondo kyorugi), the institute aims to widen the gap with competing nations by providing "All-in" support combining psychology, physical fitness and conditioning, technology, and video analysis.
Furthermore, the sports science support model is divided by establishing strategies for "podium transition in close-to-medal sports" requiring the overcoming of minute performance gaps with top athletes (such as track cycling, table tennis, and taekwondo poomsae), and "customized support for specialized and new sports" targeting non-Olympic and Asian Games-specific events (such as kurash, jiu-jitsu, and mixed martial arts).
Meanwhile, the Sports Promotion Foundation announced plans to establish a tentative "Asian Games Joint Support Center" linking the Asian Games venue and the Jincheon National Training Center remote support room to build a response system for real-time sports science support.
(Photo courtesy of Korea Sports Promotion Foundation, Yonhap News)
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