The goal of progress As Guttmann (1978) described, there is an undisputed correlation between the goal of sport and that of scientists, all of whom pursue greater human achievement. In sport, this is mostly accomplished by upgrading and expanding current facilities and technologies. As Trabal (2008) points out, under this reasoning, it will be expected that all recent scientific innovations that have been shown to boost athletic success will be readily accepted by athletes and coaches.
However, as I have stated in this novel, this is far from the case. Via case studies in kayaking and swimming and a host of other cases, this chapter explores how changes to current sports technology are both accepted and refused. Brohm (1978) claimed that the search for change had led professional sports preparation to become ‘Taylorised.’
He explained how the body had come to be regarded as a computer, and the preparation was designed to achieve optimum performance. Interestingly, Frederick Taylor, the pioneer of scientific administration at the office, was also one of the first to incorporate productivity into physical training and sports science. While Taylor is well known for his work in conserving energy and achieving optimum productivity across the workplace (Taylor and Bedeian, 2007; Tenner, 1995), what is less well known about him is the manner in which he applied these same concepts to sport.