Australian Sports Scientists Lock The Door On Trade Secrets

Sharing is caring, at least that is what the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) thought when dishing out what they had learnt about athletes over the past 20 years. Australia is a sporting nation, built around big boy sports such as Rugby, League and AFL. The AIS have been sharing the secrets of Australia’s athletic success with other countries who have now taken advantage of Australian sports science principles to the betterment of their own nations sporting endeavours. What has happened now to get the lab rats in Australia’s elite sporting institution to close the door to other nations interest in Australia’s sports science secrets?

Over the past two decades Australian sports science has grown to be recognised as a leader in sports medicine around the world. Though the Australians concept of mateship to other nations has left an open door for our major rivals to gain a competitive edge in sports where Australia has traditionally dominated. Many young guys that I have grown up with during my soccer development like Seric and Culina for example, have all been a product of the AIS and the results have shown ten fold in the way that they play. Countries such as England for example have utilised Australia’s trade secrets to good effect beating us in the cricket recently for the ashes series. China for example are also well advanced in the sheer number of athletes they have, but are well behind in the application of sports science principles compared to Australia.

So the question posed is whether Australia closing it’s doors and letting it’s sports science secrets expand under cover will benefit the nation in it’s long term future? Or, will the severing of long-term scientific ties with other nations leave Australia isolated? Time will tell.