Talent Scouting – Going for the Gold with Science

How can one know whether a young person has what it takes to be a high-performance athlete? And what characterizes a good athlete, scientifically speaking? To study these issues, researchers at the Cologne Sports College have founded "momentum",
the German research center for competitive sports.


We accompany a young soccer player who has come to Cologne for a performance checkup and is put through all kinds of medical tests. At the center of the institute is the biomechanics lab. Here, researchers use infrared cameras and computer analysis to study rapid sequences of motion that the unaided eye cannot register, for example movements in walking, high-jumping, and soccer. On a monitor, the scientists make visible the forces that affect the skeleton and musculature. This examination helps an athlete avoid mistakes in training and also measures improvement in his performance.


Teams of scientists from four different disciplines work together at �momentum�. They want to discover hidden talents and provide medical aid, but they also want to find out what training program is optimal for getting the most out of athletes without harming their health.


Our guest on this topic is Dr. Kiros Karamanidis, a biomechanic at the German Sport University in Cologne