Ready. Set. Go!
That’s how fast NASCAR zoomed atop the technology scene to improve its sport. They recently earned the IBC2012 Innovation Award for the Content Management sector. For those who may not be familiar, the IBC (International Broadcasting Convention) Awards, “encapsulate everything that is positive about electronic media and entertainment, highlighting collaboration and those who push boundaries,” per the ibc.org website. NASCAR teamed up with Telestream’s video content, Quantum’s data management, and CineSys’ disk storage to produce a video capture-and-replay system.
This instant-replay system consists of a high-definition hardware encoder and very efficient, multifaceted replay application. In addition, the significant storage spaces that can be easily compartmentalized allow for an immediate access to 18 HD interconnected cameras. These merged technologies work in unison to assist NASCAR officials to make resourceful and swift determinations.
NASCAR’s Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton expounded on the strengths of this technology: “Having instant access to that many camera angles featuring such high-quality video has been a terrific addition to our race weekends.”
Essentially, referees can now view entire races through a monitor with 18 HD screens that feature options to rewind and analyze livestream video content as its happening. These extra visual dimensions enable them to observe races more proficiently than ever before. Fans will get to experience a race with fewer missed calls. There virtually isn’t a single incident that will go unnoticed or can’t be reviewed through this extensive, high-quality database.
The high-octane nature of NASCAR certainly demands for greater visual standards. Referees can only see so much of the action without these improvements.
Still, other sports can also benefit from upgrading their replay system like NASCAR did.
Americans can breathe easy now that the labor dispute between the NFL and the referees is over. The aftermath from the Monday Night Football game was ugly. Players and fans inherently believe the real officials won’t negatively impact the game to such a large degree. According to The Wall Street Journal, just 31 percent of the total 29 challenge flags were overturned from the replacement refs. This mark is down by 52 and 42 percent dating back to the past two seasons, respectively. Additionally, only 11 more penalties have been called the past two weeks from the same period last season and a mere .6 percent increase in penalties against the home teams, states The Wall Street Journal. That said, it wouldn’t hurt the NFL to invest on this new replay tech and really regain some of their integrity back.
Another sport that can definitely use this advanced capture-and-replay system is track and field. It is bad enough that there isn’t an adequate process to break a dead heat. Jeneba Tarmoh and Allyson Felix were left with the choice to either have a runoff or have a coin flip, which would decide who of them was going to represent the U.S.A. in the 100 meters during these past summer’s Olympics. The hi-speed linear camera that runs 3,000 frames per second doesn’t suffice any more. There shouldn’t be subjectivity in play to determine an athlete’s qualification in the Olympic trials. One photo isn’t enough tangible evidence for a sport where athlete trains four long years for this opportunity. The London Olympics have vastly improved across the tech scene—even being dubbed “the first social media Olympic games”—it’s time for track and field to revamp their engines like NASCAR.
The power of instant replay is critical in any sport. NASCAR won an award for their innovative ways; maybe other sports can improve their product and maintain the respect from their players and fans.