This week has been one of our most entertaining and interesting in a long while. We were contracted to consult with India’s newest and most technologically advanced rowing center, the SWSC, located on campus at the Sri Ramachandra Arthroscopy & Sports Sciences Center (SRASSC), with the focus of an ambitious and long term aim to create an Indian Olympic medalist for the 2024 cycle and to promote the great sport of rowing across the entire nation – a project which the Rowing Federation of India is very excited about.

The history of rowing India is strong, with the first clubs started around the mid-late 1800’s, validating the still active Calcutta Rowing Club as one of the oldest in the world. The unfortunate reality however has been that although India consistently qualifies an athlete for most Olympics, international success has been rare. The goal of the team at the SRASSC is for all that to change and they are chasing the addition of the best technology, S&C resources, sports medicine, rowing facilities and most important of all, a central base that brings all that together to help achieve it.

The facilities at the center are world class, as should be expected of a well respected sports medical facility. The center is also an ICC accredited bowling action clinic for cricket – one of only a few in the world. There are also facilities for testing swimming, tennis and hockey – 2nd only to cricket in this sports mad nation of 1.3 billion people. There is hope that with a talent pool this big there will be some rowing monsters lurking somewhere.

The addition of science as a keystone in the quest for more performance was identified early on. Rowing in India has lacked input from the biomechanics and sports science sectors that many larger rowing powers take for granted. Understanding the athlete is key to reducing injury and enhancing performance at all levels of the sport and Anees Sayed, one of the biomech staff at the center involved in cricket feels that the analysis of movement “is important to improve efficiency to reduce the loss of energy, reduce injury risk and increase the career of the athlete. If you can improve each stroke cycle, the multiplied effect is of course very strong across a race.” Very true and this piece of the picture is one that we hope to fill in with our consulting analysis and of course our performance rowing equipment.

You can read more on Project India 2024 in the following newspapers articles that were printed during the week of BAT Logic analysis:

On A Mission To Raise The Bar

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-sports/on-a-mission-to-raise-the-bar/article8707126.ece

India Dips An Oar In Rowing’s New Wave

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/other-sports/india-dips-an-oar-in-rowings-new-wave/article8733259.ece

Keep an eye out over the next year as we visit the SWSC again on the quest to promote the sport, reduce injury and as always, enhance performance!