2 . When James Haskell started playing professional rugby football, technology’ influence was very limited. One of its first and important uses within the game, he says, was just urine testing (尿检). “A lot has changed since then. Now all the players wear GPS heart-rate monitors,” the former England and Wasps ruby union player says. Data and technology have become important parts of a professional sports team and its players’ lives, Haskell says.

But this is only the beginning.

“New 5G will bring a whole set of new devices to the sports industry and the connectivity of supply chains that isn’t possible today,” explains Scott Petty, the chief technology officer of Vodafone UK. Vodafone’s recent research shows 70 per cent of decision-makers in the sports industry believe it is behind other industries in, adopting new technology.

However, things are changing gradually. The research suggests that 76 per cent of sports leaders say new 5G technology will drive innovation within their organizations. According to research, sport is an area where new 5G will have a huge impact. It has the ability to transform the fan experience and help athletes improve their fitness and training programmes. Around 74 per cent of sports leaders believe 5G will help meet rising fan expectations.

Haskell is looking forward to seeing what 5G will enable in the future. Vodafone’s new 5G network was launched (推出) in July. At the launch, two Wasps players demonstrated an innovative use of the tech when they conducted a joint training session, despite being 100 miles apart. At an event in London, Will Rowlands tackled a bag (擒抱摔倒) and almost at the same time, through wearable devices, De Jongh felt the force of the tackle.

Going forwards, Haskell expects that players will be able to quantify (量化) their performance in new ways. The key to this? The ability to read real-time data and make training programmes completely personalized.

Haskell says, “This ability will be terrific and you’ll suddenly be able to quantify everything!”

This will be game-changing.

An Unforgettable Sports Meeting

7 . Do you have a talented young artist, photographer, or designer in your life? It’s never too early to start helping them get their work out there! We’e listed the top art competitions for kids and teens that can help these young creators share their first masterpiece with the world. Most of them are totally free to enter!

Global Canvas Children’s Art Competition

Ages: 16 and under

Mediums: drawing, painting

Organized by the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, this art competition wants to inspire the next generation to be more mindful of how we take care of the earth. The judges are looking for artists to discover the wonderful places that wildlife calls home.

Toyota Dream Car Art Contest

Ages: 15 and under

Mediums: drawing, painting

Time to design a dream car! Toyota wants to get junior artists thinking about what the future of transportation might look like. Prizes include a chance to tour one of the Toyota car factories and experience various aspects of Japanese culture.

Advena World Children’s Art Competition

Ages: 15 and under

Mediums: drawing, painting, photos and other original artworks

The competition aims to promote creativity and self-expression. Instead of a theme, it asks the participating artists to simply express their feelings-anything from sadness or joy to anger or excitement-through their chosen medium.

Progressive Young Artists Awards

Open to: high school and college students

Mediums: drawing, painting, photograph, mixed media, sculpture

PYAA is all about expressing and celebrating progressive values. So, if there is a creative teen in your life who wants to do good in the world, sign him or her up for this art competition.The prize is a scholarship that winners can put forwards their further schooling.

8 . For more than fifty years, athletes competing in the Olympic games have often been cheered on by either a furry or feathered friend. The Olympic mascot—a cartoonish representation of the host city’s culture and history is so important, and designs are often selected and finalized years before the Games take place. According to the International Olympic Committee(IOC) the role of these things is to help spread a “festive atmosphere” and embody the spirit of the event.

Over the decades, the world has welcomed snowmen, sasquatches, cowboy-hat-wearing bears and aliens to the Olympic stage. The first mascot was created in 1968 by designer Aline Lafargue for the Grenoble Winter Games in France. Affectionately named “Shuss”, the character consists of a two-toned head and lightning-bolt shaped leg attached to skis. Despiteholding the title of first ever mascot. Lafargue created and submitted her design for Shuss in just one night.

To find a worthy representative, each host country will typically organize a submission contest. In 2014 a competition held by Russia in anticipation for the Sochi Winter Games received more than 24.000 drawings. The winners a trio of arctic mammals were selected by a public vote with the results broadcast on Russian TV. But this hasn’t always been the case: For the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympic, one of the first Olympic events to be heavily influenced by corporate financing, Disney won the private bid for mascot design.

Since these creatures are also important to official merchandise (指定商品), cuteness and cuddliness have long been key standards for any mascot’s success. Merchandise of Beijing’s round panda mascot Bing Dwen Dwen for the 2022 Winter Games is already “selling like hotcakes”.

Character design becomes especially important when the Games coincide with a unique moment in history. For example, Sydney, Australia, the host country of the first Olympics of the millennium (千禧年), adopted three mascots for the first time in the Games’ history. The three anime-style cartoons, Syd, Olly and Millie, were named in reference to Sydney, Olympics and Millennium and T-shirts from this landmark Games are still circulating second-hand resale sites now.