Keynote Lectures

From Measurement to Prediction: The Future of Personalized Sports Performance Through Biomechanical Digital Twins
Benedicte Vanwanseele, Department of Movement Science, KU Leuven / Institute of Sports Science, KU Leuven, Belgium

Wearable Devices in Sport: Potential Benefits, Challenges, Limitations, and Ethical Issues
Xavier Bigard, Union Cycliste Internationale, Switzerland

The Hamstring Toolbox: Leveraging Force Assessment Technology for Precision Management, Monitoring, and Injury Risk Profiling
Nicholas Ripley, University of Salford, United Kingdom

Abstract
The next revolution in sports science will not come from collecting more data, but from transforming data into individualized predictions. Advances in wearable sensing, machine learning, musculoskeletal modeling and computational biomechanics are enabling the development of biomechanical digital twins: personalized virtual representations of athletes that continuously integrate movement, loading and physiological information.

This keynote will discuss how the field is evolving from descriptive monitoring toward predictive sports science. Drawing on examples from elite sport, injury prevention and rehabilitation, the presentation will demonstrate how wearable technologies can be combined with physics-based models to estimate internal tissue loading, identify athlete-specific risk factors and optimize training interventions. Particular attention will be given to the challenges of translating laboratory-based biomechanical assessments into real-world sporting environments.

Finally, the talk will explore how the integration of artificial intelligence and mechanistic modeling may enable truly personalized training and rehabilitation strategies, allowing coaches and clinicians to move beyond population averages and toward athlete-specific decision making. The concept of the biomechanical digital twin offers a framework for unlocking human performance while simultaneously reducing injury risk.

Abstract
Endurance sports impose sustained physiological challenges, particularly in energy metabolism, hydration, macronutrients requirements, as well as biomechanical challenges. Scientific advances over the past years have led to the development of small, light-weight sensors that can be worn on the human body or event mounted on sporting equipment. These devices can measure position, motion, biomechanical parameters (e.g. stride frequency, movement trajectories, foot-worn inertial sensors), heart rate variability, oxygen saturation, glucose and metabolic parameters in blood, sleep quality markers.

The widespread use of these wearable devices in sports raises several questions:
a) the validity, reliability and quality assurance of these devices.
b) how can multi-source data be integrated and interpreted to provide clinically meaningful insights and/or inform training and performance?
c) how should real-time data from wearables be used? At least two distinct domains of use can be identified, 1- the health-related use of wearable data, with the aim of adjusting workloads, preventing injuries, reducing the risk of heat-related illness and accidents. 2- the use of these devices for training planning and competition monitoring allows for the individualized athlete monitoring, with a focus on performance.
d) ethical concerns are multifaceted and relate to 1- substantial resources requirement, including financial investment and expertise to interpret the data. 2- lack of security on data storage and sharing, 3- potential implications for fairness and the integrity of sport.

Future perspectives on AI-based personalized medical monitoring and training program planning could contribute to optimizing physiological and biomechanical responses to training. However, a key question remains, whether the use of wearable devices should be restricted to training environments rather than being permitted during competitions, to preserve the spirit of sport?

Abstract
Effective hamstring management in sport performance requires moving beyond isolated measures of high force output towards a strategic approach to data collection. This keynote presentation will propose a framework for integrating force assessment technology into athletic performance and rehabilitation workflows. Providing clear guidance on the utilisation of force assessment technology around hamstring management presenting thoughts around benchmarking, fatigue monitoring, longitudinal tracking, and injury risk profiling—this session attempts to rationalise the assessment of hamstring force production from analysing what metrics are collected to mastering how they are captured in sports performance. Exploring the biomechanical and practical rationale behind why specific assessments are superior for distinct objectives. Identifying the metrics that demonstrate high sensitivity and outline the methodologies required to ensure rigorous, reliable, and accurate data collection. This presentation will provides practitioners with a practical, evidence-based "toolbox", to confidently select, execute, and interpret force plate assessments to optimize hamstring health and athletic performance.