Ricky Ponting's Kookaburra bat, which had graphite reinforcements, bottle, is sports’ natural future not ‘mano a mano’ but man+machine? challenged cricket. This was hailed as the most potent bat ever used. Consign current records to history and start again? The International Cricket Council, very reasonably, determined that this Sports governing bodies face the onerous ongoing task of striking a balance gave batsmen unfair balance in a match so banned non-wooden between embracing progress while ensuring fair competition. Technological materials in bats. developments in sports offer athletes opportunities to push the boundaries The LZR Racer swimsuit by Speedo, launched in 2008. At the Beijing of human performance but the spirit of sports needs respecting, i.e. the Olympics that year, swimmers wearing the suit scooped a staggering celebration of hard work, talent, resilience, and competitive equity. The 94% of all swimming gold medals and set 33 new world records. Its question is, at what point does tech-led innovation intervene or enhance. dominance prompted the International Swimming Federation (FINA) to This topic will be debated as part of The STA Group Great Debate Lunch ban all body-length swimsuits in 2010, deciding that technology should Series at the Kia Oval on February 29 2024. not overshadow athletes' ability There are others examples across sport but a more nuanced issue is that If you are interested in attending the lunch. Please register your interest of para-athletes using running blades. Regulating them presents a unique challenge as technologies enabling disabled athletes to compete often straddle the line between necessity and advantage but they are not without controversy. Their curved design provides more significant energy return, enabling athletes to reach speeds close to, or in some cases superior to, their non-disabled counterparts. While tech-doping is not directly relevant in motorsports per se, the hot ‘drinking debate’ topic is how well the car, boat or bike serves the driver, pilot or rider – put them on another vehicle and would they do as well? Sports, ultimately, should essentially be contests of skill, strategy, training, and human spirit, facilitated - not replaced by technology… or should it? Is there an argument that since the genie is now out of the