If the Super Bowl is one of the biggest showcases of innovation in the U.S., the Olympic Games have become a platform for which companies can display their latest technologies in connectivity and digital media on a global stage.
A number of “firsts” are expected to take place at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games, which kicked off this week, including a wide-scale virtual reality broadcast from Intel, high-tech uniforms and enhanced security features from an army of drones and X-ray vehicles.
SportTechie rounded up the top technologies underpinning the Games heading into the 16-day event:
Virtual Reality
In what will be the largest-scale virtual reality event to date and the first live virtual reality broadcast of the Olympic Winter Games, Intel will rotate roughly two dozen 180-degree cameras that it built in-house across 18 live events over the two-and-a-half week event. It’ll shoot 30 events in total — another 12 with 360-degree cameras — to create a mix of VR live streams and video-on-demand content.
Streaming & Broadcast
NBC will provide 4K high-dynamic-range (4K HDR) coverage to distribution partners such as Comcast, DISH and DirecTV. The technology, which displays images at over 8 million pixels, will “significantly expand” the range of color and contract delivered to viewers. The opening ceremony, figure skating, hockey, short track speed skating, ski jumping and snowboarding big air competitions will be among the featured events in 4K HDR.
“The Olympics has always been a platform for the introduction of new broadcast technology,” NBC Olympics President Gary Zenkel said in a statement, adding that it will be a “great showcase for this emerging advancement in the quality of televised sports coverage in the U.S.”
NBC, which is the official broadcast partner for the 2018 Winter Olympics in the U.S., is expected to offer 176 hours of total coverage. Including its other channels, such as NBCSN, CNBC and USA, and its extensive online offerings, the broadcast company will air more than 2,400 hours of Olympic coverage.
In addition to broadcast, viewers can watch the Olympics on the NBC Sports app, as well as on streaming services that include NBC in their subscriptions, such as Hulu, YouTube TV, PlayStation Vue and DirecTV.
Connectivity
Intel has partnered with KT Corporation, a South Korean communications service provider, to develop the world’s largest 5G showcase at the 2018 Olympics Winter Games. During the two-week event, KT will deliver the first broad-scale 5G network paired with Intel 5G technologies. Intel says it plans to use the increased computing power the deliver “a series of immersive on-site 5G-powered experiences.”
“The upcoming Olympic Winter Games will offer a preview of our 5G future,” an Intel spokesperson said.
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Separately, Alibaba announced that it has become the official cloud services and e-commerce platform services provider for The International Olympic Committee, offering digital capabilities in a partnership through 2028. Alibaba, which has announced that it’s a founding partner of the Olympic Channel, said its cloud infrastructure will help Olympics management operate more efficiently and securely. Alibaba will also provide services to support the Olympic Committee’s big data analytics requirements.
With Alibaba, the IOC hopes to better access an estimated 700 million online viewers in China.
Security
The Pyeongchang Olympics anti-Terrorism and Safety Headquarters will leverage a number of high-tech solutions to keep a tight lid on security in and around the Olympic venues, which are located just 50 miles north of a demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea.
Drones will be used to inspect activity on the ground with HD and thermal imaging cameras. In areas deemed the most likely to be targeted, drones with radar networks will watch the skies for unidentified unmanned aerial vehicles, then alert security forces who will then move in to counter a potential attack.
All of the areas near the Olympic venues have been deemed as no-fly zones. If unauthorized drones enter the airspace, interceptor drones will be deployed to capture rogue drones with nets.
Another aircraft, a tactical airplane that is set to make its international debut at the Olympics, will monitor activities on the ground from an elevation of roughly 500 to 650 feet. The plane is equipped with high-resolution intelligent CCTV capabilities, which will complement the roughly 900 CCTV cameras with tracking capabilities on the ground. Together, they’ll provide security offices an all-encompassing perspective of visitor activities in and around the venues and detect for suspicious movements.
On the ground, the team will use a vehicle capable of detecting and identifying 400 different hazardous substances to monitor chemical warfare agents within a 5 kilometer radius of the venues. Three X-ray search vehicles will be used to search incoming vehicles for stowaways, guns and other dangerous objects, while satellite and other aerial images will detect potential hiding sports of snipers.
Social Media
Snapchat will host a range of exclusive content surrounding the games, as it introduces the streaming of live Olympics coverage from NBC to users in the U.S.
Following a successful run between NBC and Snapchat during the Rio Olympics, which saw more than 35 million people in the U.S. tune into NBC’s Olympics coverage on Snapchat, the two will partner again for Pyeongchang. NBC, which owns the rights to broadcast the Olympics until at least 2032, will feature content produced by Buzzfeed that will leverage the companies’ intimate access to the Games.
The Olympic Channel announced a multi-year agreement with Snap in an attempt to provide Snapchat users with original content and creative tools, such as themed filters and stickers, that engage younger demographics with the Olympics all year round. As part of that, Snapchat will produce an Our Stories channel featuring archival footage provided by the Olympic Channel team.
Eurosport and Snap have also partnered to bring Olympic content, including behind-the-scenes coverage and insights from Olympians and other influencers, to users in Europe.
Heated Uniforms
Ralph Lauren and the United States Olympic Committee will debut new uniforms for the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams during the opening ceremonies that will feature a wearable heating component that’s designed to keep athletes warm in PyeongChang’s cold temperatures.
The heating system is made from flexible and stretchable conductive inks, printed in the shape of an American flag in carbon and silver ink that’s bonded to the interior of the jackets. The water-repellent inks connect to a battery pack with three settings that offer up to 11 hours of heating.
Smarter Uniforms
Two Dutch short track speedskaters will be wearing the Samsung SmartSuit during their competition. The suit is embedded with five sensors that can measure body posture and calculate how far a skater’s hips are from the ice, data that when analyzed can give athletes a sense of how they can increase their speeds, even by just a fraction of a second.
The data is sent to an app in real time to be analyzed by a coach, who can then send feedback to the athlete during the race in the form of vibrations. For example, a vibration on their wrist might advise them to correct their posture.
Under Armour has unveiled an updated uniform for the U.S. Speedskating team after the team failed to medal in the 2014 Winter Olympics and at least one athlete blamed the poor performance on the suits, which she referred to as “defective.”
UA’s new suits feature a new aerodynamic fabric and asymmetrical seam that reduces bunching. The company removed a back vent that some athletes believed contributed to drag and added a dimpled texture to certain portions of the suit that it says will also alleviate drag.
Payment Wearables
Visa is introducing payment-connected winter gloves and two other wearables that will enable cashless payments at the Games.
The company will offer Olympics attendees smart gloves that contain a dual interface chip with an antenna that will enable contactless payments throughout the venue, where Visa has installed more than 1,000 NFC-enabled point-of-sale terminals. It will also offer four different commemorative Olympic lapel pins that enable payments and an array of thin, flexible adhesive micro tags that are embedded with NFC chips and antennas and can be attached to a variety of items.
Robots
Robots will play a part at the games, providing a range of services, such as customer service and housekeeping. While one robot has already been detected vacuuming the press center (think of a glorified Rumba), the other models will provide services such as offering Games information and translation, or serving drinks, according to Canada’s Global News.
They like to keep things clean here at Main Press Centre. Watch out for this robot vacuuming the halls. It says something, but can’t quite make it out. #PyeongChang2018. pic.twitter.com/FGrSFQ9uGd
— Reid Fiest (@ReidFiest) February 6, 2018