High-tech sports gear on the slopes at Paralympics

One of the most fascinating disciplines to be seen at this year's Paralympic Games in Vancouver is monoskiing. Athletes race down the slopes at speeds reaching up to 110 kilometers per hour (68 miles per hour) in a molded seat mounted on a special frame and attached to a conventional ski. Watching these athletes, it's hard to imagine they're actually handicapped. And it's all possible thanks to technology.

According to Martin Braxenthaler, the newly-crowned men's sit-ski slalom champ, the monoskis are specially designed for each individual athlete out of carbon fibers, similar to those used in Formula 1 cockpits. Of course this kind of technology comes at a price.

"It's roughly the same as a new compact car," said Braxthaler.

Such high-tech equipment isn't available in your local sporting goods store, since the design and creation of it involves an interdisciplinary team, says Hans Georg Naeder, CEO of medical technology firm Otto Bock. Usually it involves the athlete, their therapist, often their doctor and even the orthopedic technician working together for hours and hours, developing a concept.

"It's a long, but often very entertaining, process," said Naeder.

Unfair advantage?

Experts say athletic ability is more important than technology

Monoski technology has really taken off, especially over the past few years. And when dealing with a sport that relies so heavily on technology, many people wonder how much of a role athletic ability really plays. Martin Braxenthaler says that the performance level for him and his fellow athletes is so high, that the span between victory and defeat can be measured in hundredths of a second.

"And there it isn't the material, but rather the psyche – the mental strength – that's important," he explained.

Hans Georg Naeder doesn't want to attribute much significance to the technology. For him the human factor will always be more important than the machine, which is just there to provide support. In the end, getting down the slope quickly and successfully is up to the athlete.

Positive side effects

The best gear in the world cannot always save a skier from wiping out

Beyond the actual benefit to the many individuals taking part in sporting events like the Paralympics that this technology provides, Naeder points out that the cooperative work undertaken by top athletes and orthopedic specialists has other positive fallout. New materials designed to help make a skier better on the slopes and be modified to help any handicapped person get around in their daily lives.

"Whether it's advancements in carbon technology or joint construction, every new development trickles down to regular handicapped people," he said. "And so the Paralympic Games play an extremely important roll as a trailblazer."

Author: Sarah Faupel (mrm)
Editor: Ranjitha Balasubramanyam