Bulawayo Chiefs becomes first club in Zim to use GPS player tracking

Zimbabwe’s football Twitter Kings and cutting edge club Bulawayo Chiefs FC has announced a partnership with local firm Catapult Sports which will see the team use GPS tracking for its players.

This partnership makes Bulawayo Chiefs FC the first club in Zimbabwe to use wearable GPS technology for its players. Speaking on the announcement Bulawayo Chiefs FC Media Officer Thabani Sibanda said the following:

“We are excited about having this set of technology, which ticks the box on our vision to champion sports technology as we endeavour to make great strides in football professionalism. Our technical partner is providing us with technical guidance and support to ensure that we yield maximum benefit of the technology”

GPS technology in sports has been a revelation since its introduction back in 2006. It allows coaches and medical staff to monitor a players Training Impulse (TRIMP). This measures the player’s maximum internal load based on resting heart rate, maximum heart rate and average heart rate during a session.

Coaches can also see the distance players cover as well as the load they are putting on their respiratory and circulatory systems. GPS technology in football has helped to reduce injury and improve player development.

With this new technology, Bulawayo Chiefs FC will be able to extract more from their players. For the time I have been aware of this Club it has been pushing boundaries, this announcement is another sign that the club is trying to catch up to standards set abroad. Hopefully one day they can surpass them.