From the shoes we wear on our feet to the high definition televisions in our living room, wearable devices, the sports universe is a breeding ground for technology. Writer and Photographer Rick Limpert will examine this each week on The Tech of Sports – With guests which include athletes, inventors and journalists that cover the intersection of sports and technology.
Rick is joined this week by Todd Harple, the Olympics AI Innovation Program Lead at Intel.
Intel is leading innovation at the Paris Games.
In his role, he is working to enhance the way sporting events are produced and experienced through novel applications of AI. He has over 17 years of experience and has led product and research development efforts at the cutting-edge interface between people, technology and business, leading the establishment of services and experiences that shape how we use technology today–connecting the physical and digital worlds–on a global scale.
Topics they cover include:
Utilizing AI for athletic training & identifying potential athletes in rural or developing countries using an AI app to find the next big stars
There will also be an on-the-ground demo in Paris for fans to use the AI tech to see what Olympic sport they’d be best suited for and how they compare to Olympic athletes
Intel and the IOC partnered with Senegal (a country that has only won one medal) using this tool to uncover aspiring athletes across 5 villages in Senegal bringing together 1,000 children with 40 identified as having “significant talent”
Empowering those who are visually impaired, navigate event venues using lidar and AI camera vision
Providing all athletes with an AI-powered Chatbot, that can answer complex athlete queries like questions about the IOC’s doping policy (i.e. would cold medicine be illegal for me to take before the event?) and media rights usage.
This year, back in Cleveland, July 24-28, the National Sports Collectors Convention stands as an annual rendezvous for collectors, dealers, and all enthusiasts passionate about trading cards, autographs, and related memorabilia. In 1980, a small group of collectors convened in a modest hotel ballroom at the Los Angeles International Airport Marriott, marking the inaugural National Sports Collectors Convention.
Since those humble beginnings, The National has evolved into an extravagant, once-a-year event, now recognized as the premier showcase in the collectibles industry.To ensure the participation of collectors and exhibitors from across the nation, the founders made a visionary decision—the event would travel to different locations.
Rick and Rich talk about the show, Cleveland as a host city, what to look for and prices of various things, including autographs.
Going to be a huge week of sports collecting. Sports Collectors Daily will have all the coverage you can handle.
Mueller spent nearly 30 years as a television sports anchor and reporter and online journalist is President of Sports Collectors Daily Incorporated and the editor of SportsCollectorsDaily.com. He has earned numerous honors throughout his career including several prestigious Edward R. Murrow awards for sports reporting. Go to SportsCollectorsDaily.com to subscribe, for daily updates.
Rick talks jet lag with expert, Dr. Steve Jasper this week.
Did you know that Olympic teams flying across multiple time zones can have their gold Olympic medal counts cut in half – or worse? And that the number of silver medals by Olympic medal teams actually increases when athletes travel long distances across multiple time zones – because athletes that were expected to win a gold medal come home with a silver one instead? Jet lag has a massive impact on the performance of athletes who travel. The difference between a gold and a silver medal is often measured in milliseconds, and jet lag is enough to have an effect.
Per Dr. Steve Jasper: “While I was researching my thesis in jet lag and executive performance, I decided to examine Olympic medal counts as a side project. After crunching the numbers for several decades’ worth of Olympic games, the results were crystal clear – jet lag has a definite and measurable impact on Olympic gold medal counts.”
There are three key things that can have a massive impact on transforming jet lag:
Know yourself – are you an owl or a fowl? Do you like to wake up at the crack of dawn, or at the crack of noon? There’s no guilt in honestly admitting you’re not a morning person – and that will affect how you manage your jet lag.
Flight direction – for most people, “east is a beast, west is best”. But for the real morning people among us, you might find it’s the other way around!
Sunlight – such a simple thing but getting outdoors for a few minutes in the middle of the day, or when you feel a bit drowsy, can reprogram the brain and wake you up.
Jasper is a recognized expert in the field of jet lag and executive performance, and is passionate about transforming the conversation around jet lag. His background was as a pharmacist, where he worked mainly in the hospital system before transferring to the pharmaceutical industry. He worked on several global clinical trials, and while working in a global HIV/AIDS trial he headed up a team with branches in San Francisco, Raleigh (North Carolina, USA), Cambridge (UK), São Paulo and Buenos Aires. He undertook lots of international travel in this role, and experienced firsthand the toll of jet lag.
After completing an executive MBA, Dr Jasper completed his PhD in international management, examining the impact of jet lag on business travelers, and he is regularly contacted by the media in all matters relating to jet lag, sleep, and performance.
As a result of his research, he is launching a suite of products to support business travelers in managing their jet lag. This includes a book, an app, workshops, and one on one coaching, as well as franchising products that alleviate jet lag. He is available for speaking engagements, and can work internationally either by video conferencing, or travel if required. Please feel free to contact us at drsteve@jetlagguy.com.au if you have any questions or require additional information.
What people have to say about the book
“I always read a writers material before I decide to meet with them. I decided to meet with Jon Rineman. That should tell you everything you need to know. Case closed. Enjoy the book.”
– Jay Leno
“This book brings together three of my favorite pastimes: playing “what if?”; the NBA; and Jon Rineman’s comedy! A delightful read!”
– Gary Gulman, Star of The Great Depresh
“As some who has spent two decades working in sports media, I believe the two keys to success are the ability to entertain and teach. Jon does both of those things in this book. He is one of the most talented writers I know, and certainly the most passionate basketball fan I know. Give a talented writer something they are passionate about and the result is what we have here in the pages that follow.”
– Justin Termine, Host of NBA Today on SiriusXM Radio
Plot:
In 1986, the Boston Celtics were basketball’s gold standard – NBA Champions and owners of the second pick in that year’s draft. From Jon Rineman (writer for The Tonight Show, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, WWE) The Garden’s Always Greener explores a timeline where the good times rolled, thanks to a charismatic rookie who changed everything. From one player saving Tupac to stopping O.J. to another’s unlikely billions as a coffee magnate, it is a complete reimagining of the late-80s and 90s – with traces of 11/22/63, Forrest Gump, and Curb Your Enthusiasm. A hilarious, uplifting must-read for Gen Xers, Millennials, and fans of all ages.
Based on a computer simulation (with a story crafted around it), the book includes everything from narrative to historic rosters to Playoff brackets, as well as imagined newspaper clippings, talk show transcripts, and sitcom pages. If you are a fan of NBA tomes such as The Jordan Rules and When The Game Was War, documentaries such as The Last Dance, or HBO’s Winning Time, you’ll love this reimagined glance at what could’ve been during the NBA’s Golden Era of the 1980s and 90s.
Jon dedicated the book to his late father, who passed after a long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. Jon is donating from his profits to the Alzheimer’s Association.
From Jon Rineman (writer for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, The Tonight Show, WWE) comes the Amazon #1 New Release The Garden’s Always Greener: Another NBA Timeline. On June 14, 2024, the book reached #1 on Amazon for Professional Basketball (Kindle) and #8 for Professional Basketball (Books).
In 1986, the Boston Celtics were basketball’s gold standard – NBA Champions and owners of the second pick in that year’s draft. The Garden’s Always Greener explores a timeline where the good times rolled, thanks to a charismatic rookie who changes everything.
In this timeline, a role-player inadvertently stops O.J. and saves Tupac, the surviving Beatles (attempt to) reunite, and Michael Jordan struggles to win. Meanwhile, a mysterious creature looks on from the hallowed Boston Garden rafters at this epic melding of Forrest Gump and Curb Your Enthusiasm which also features the likes of Shaq, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Red Auerbach, and Rick Pitino. A must-read for Gen Xers, Millennials, and fans of all ages.
MORE BACKGROUND: The basis for the story is an NBA2K video game simulation Jon ran during COVID-19 lockdown back in 2020-21. Once complete, Jon revisited the results (which remained untouched) and used that as a prompt to compose a comedic narrative. (Additional research into other NBA “what ifs” of the 1980s & 90s was incorporated.)
NOTE: Jon dedicated the book to his late father, who passed after a long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. Jon is donating from his profits to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Edward Rahill’s fascination with endurance road racing was sparked as a young boy tuned into the iconic 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans. Born and bred in Western New York and an alumnus of the University of Notre Dame, Rahill carved out a successful career in the energy sector. As CFO of ITC Holdings and later as the Founder, President, and CEO of GridLiance, a Blackstone Company sold in 2021, Rahill showcased his leadership and innovation. Yet, ever faithful to his philosophy of life, upon completing this book, Rahill already has his sights set on his next exciting venture.
Edward Rahill holds a place in the annals of history as the cross-continental endurance road race record holder, boasting the fastest time in a competitive road race stretching from Boston to San Diego. His debut novel, One Mile at a Time, is more than a chronicle of this thrilling feat. It’s a tribute to a promise made to his grandmother — that his children’s generation would finally shatter the cycle of broken dreams. With its publication, Rahill’s commitment has beautifully come to life.
Currently residing in Atlanta, Georgia, Rahill is a record holder, a successful businessman, and a proud father of four adult children. His story is one of grit, endurance, and the power of dreaming big — his story leaves readers captivated and inspired.
That is what US long jumper, Sha’Keela Saunders told me as she prepares for the Olympic Trials in Eugene.
Suanders was the 2017 NCAA Division I Indoor track and field Long jump champion. She earned 13-time NCAA Division I All-America honors in her college career. She first broke the University of Kentucky Wildcats school record in the long jump for the first time 6.53 m (21 ft 5 in) en route to a first-place finish at the 2015 University of Kentucky Rod McCravy Memorial Track & Field Meet. Sha’Keela set the University of Kentucky Wildcats school record in the Long jump in 6.90 m (22 ft 8 in) in 2017 – a performance thank ranked and placed her in third on the all-time collegiate indoor list.
She’s competed in Diamond League events, World Championships and now an Olympics would complete her resume’.
She is also the Head Women’s Track and Field Coach at Hampton University in Virginia and loves passing along her knowledge to younger athletes.
Great to talk with Sha’Keela and it really only takes one jump.
