On the face of it, theoretical physics and elite diving appear to have little in common, but theories from one are being used to improve the other.
An unlikely team of physicists, engineers and sports scientists have come together to understand the movement of divers in the air with the goal of improving their performance.
Taking measurements from professional divers, including Commonwealth Games silver medallist Matthew Mitcham, the group built a computer model that simulated current dive techniques but also invented more complex moves that increased the athletes’ somersaults and twists.
They found it is possible for an elite athlete to execute a never before attempted five twist dive.
“Now we just need the intrepid coach and diver prepared to attempt it,” said physicist and mathematician Holger Dullin, and leader of the Bodies in Space project, from the University of Sydney.
The current twist limit, rarely attempted in competition because of the difficulty of consistently achieving it, is four.
Having launched off the platform with both arms above their head, a diver performs a twist by bring one arm down to their side.
This asymmetrical motion tilts the body in one direction and initiates the twist, which can be reversed by bringing the arm back above the head.
But model simulations show that an arm move executed at the right time could double the speed of the twist, allowing a diver to perform up to five.
“While Mitcham may only be airborne for 1.5 to 2 seconds our modelling shows there is still room for him to incorporate extra twists in his dive,’’ Dr Dullin said.
While it is unlikely Mitcham will attempt this new technique - the 26-year-old Beijing Olympic medallist has hinted he my soon retire - the project’s outcomes shows that a cross-fertilisation of ideas can find ways to improve elite athlete performance.
‘‘The whole idea of getting extra twists by doing the double pumping action, I would never have thought of such a thing’’, said biomechanist Peter Sinclair and a member of the project.
‘‘The benefit [of collaborating] is you look at problems from a different direction,’’ he said.
But Dr Sinclair said the five twist combination may be so complex an elite diver may not be willing to try it, and risk injuring themselves in the process.
‘‘The timing for that transition needs to be done in a certain part of the movement and if you’re spinning faster, it becomes that much harder to perform it at a particular point in the rotation,’’ he said.
Bodies in Space was co-funded by the Australian Research Council and the NSW Institute of Sport.
