SAP Sailing Analytics is processing world-class race performance data in real time to steer the course of this year’s Extreme Sailing Series to new racing – and television – heights for the innovative sports series’ tenth season.
New sensors mounted on the foils of this year’s new GC32 catamarans will measure the height of each boat above the water during the race, gathering performance data, which are processed quickly through SAP Sailing Analytics to provide data directly to the teams.
The data insights, which reveal optimum foiling heights in various wind and sea conditions at various boat speeds, will enable crews to modify their strategy throughout the race, which spans three continents over 10 months.
“When this information is combined with GPS tracking, along with improved wind measurement and the power of our in-memory database SAP HANA, we can provide even more real-time and post-race insights for fans, media and sailors,” said Milan Cerny, business intelligence consultant, SAP.
The new sensors are SAP’s latest innovation for the series since it began providing technical data to the series four years ago.
“Having SAP on board as our Official Technology Partner for a fifth year allows us to stay at the forefront of innovation in the competitive sailing world,” said Andy Tourell, project director, the Extreme Sailing Series.
The 2016 Extreme Sailing Series involves eight world-class teams from eight nations competing in award-winning Stadium Racing venues in Europe, Asia and Australia. The eight Acts, unfolding over 10 months will take place in: Muscat, Portugal; Qingdao, China; Cardiff, Wales, Hamburg, Germany; St. Petersburg, Russia; Istanbul, Turkey; Lisbon, Portugal and the yet-to-be-announced finale venue in Australia.
