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TCS Sports Sponsorships: Blending Sports Technology and Sustainability
Highlights
- We’ve used AI-powered digital twin technology to create a new way for athletes to measure their health and performance.
- Celebrated marathoner Des Linden is the recipient of the first state-of-the-art Digital Twin Heart.
- We will be able to use the digital heart to test the impact of a range of variables on Des’ performance.
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Listen to your digital heart
Elevating the marathon training experience for athletes with AI-powered digital twin technology.
As the Official Title Partner of the TCS London Marathon and with our passion for endurance running, we are committed to taking the marathon experience to the next level with cutting-edge digital technology.
That’s why we are using AI-powered digital twin technology to create a brand-new way for athletes to measure their health and performance. This innovative approach will undoubtedly transform the way athletes train, providing them with real-time feedback on their progress and enabling them to make informed decisions about their training regimen.
Des Linden, the trailblazer!
We’ve created the first state-of-the-art Digital Twin Heart for the celebrated Boston Marathon champion and two-time Olympic marathoner Des Linden.
It started with Des undergoing an MRI scan. We then combined this data with her training data and other historical and speculative data sets to model the functioning heart in a virtual environment.
After two decades of competing at the highest levels of the sport, Des is used to putting her body through immense stress for a long period. Imagine the difference we could make to her training by being able to see, measure, and monitor the heart while it is under stress and accurately predicting how it will perform.
Turning data into insights to fuel performance
Now, we can put a digital twin at the heart of Des’ training plan.
During every phase, we can unlock unprecedented insights into her heart health, including:
Real-time monitoring of metrics such as heart rate, blood flow, and oxygen levels with instant feedback
Simulations to test different training scenarios and prepare for peak performance
Personalised healthcare insights
Even on a rest day, Des will have a wealth of data at her disposal. We will be able to use the digital heart to test the impact of a range of variables without Des needing to lace up her trainers, including sleep levels, wetter road conditions and temperature — remember the hottest-ever TCS London Marathon in 2018? These data-driven insights, combined with data from Des’ training runs will inform both her performance and recovery.
Transforming marathon training and healthcare
Our unique, groundbreaking partnership with Des Linden demonstrates how digital twin technology is set to transform the way athletes train, compete, and manage their health while illustrating the power and potential of personalised health and wellness.
Digital twin technology is already well on the way to revolutionising healthcare. After the digital twin of a heart is created, researchers can go a step further and use 3D printing to create a physical version of a heart. This allows doctors to practice surgical techniques and test solutions, such as new heart valves or drugs, without ever touching an actual body.
And it doesn’t stop with the heart. In future, there will be the potential to create digital twins of the entire human body, giving doctors, researchers, and surgeons new and highly advanced ways to test the effectiveness of different treatments. Our TCS Digital Twindex report identified digital twins’ ability to power connected, real-time healthcare as one of the uses that will most impact human life.
At TCS, we have a heart for innovation and believe that digital twins will change how we live and work by 2035, with the potential to make humanity healthier and more effective at everything we do.
In endurance running, we’re excited to be starting the journey towards helping athletes take more calculated strides toward the finish—from the TCS London Marathon and beyond.