X-BIONIC® SPHERE HOSTED THE BRITISH OLYMPIONICS AND RECORDERS IN ATHLETICS
We had no doubt that the x-bionic® sphere would be the best place to prepare for the World Championships,“ say members of the team of elite British athletes who won an impressive 10 medals in Budapest last year.
Many of the world’s top athletes, who are rewriting sporting history, are preparing for their performances at the x-bionic® Sphere. Last August, for example, you could meet international athletics stars at the resort before the World Athletics Championships in Budapest. The last weeks and days before the championships were crucial for the athletes; they needed an environment and conditions for preparation that would have the best possible impact on their subsequent sporting performance. x-bionic® sphere was one of the favourites, where Danes, Irishmen and the famous Romanian long jumper Alina Rotaru-Kottman were preparing. But also athletes from Great Britain.
Sports elite under one roof
The over 80-people British team included some really big names. For example, Scottish middle-distance runner Josh Kerr, British middle-distance runner Keely Nicol Hodgkinson and Ben Pattinson. You would also find among them Zharnell Hughes, the Olympian and British record holder in the 100 and 200 metres, who is currently regarded as the fastest Brit. And also Katarina Johnson-Thompson, the famous British athlete and world and European indoor pentathlon champion. In 2019, she was the world heptathlon champion at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar. Another gold – like her aforementioned colleagues – came from the World Championships in Budapest, for which she trained at the x-bionic® Sphere. However, the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team not only won 6 gold medals at the World Championships in Budapest for the individual performances of the aforementioned athletes, but also for 4 relays. „All of our relay teams also used the facilities at the x-bionic® sphere in the run-up to the championships for their preparation,“ adds Stephen Maguire from the Performance Operations team.
Strict selection criteria
The x-bionic® sphere was not completely unfamiliar to the British team prior to the two-week preparation camp in August. „A number of our athletes had previously used the x-bionic® sphere training centre as individuals as part of the World Class programme and we received a recommendation from them.“ However, the staff of British athletes needed to see the entire complex for themselves and during the two-day tour they assessed even the smallest details. „We evaluated everything from the surface of the running tracks, training equipment, gym facilities, recovery options, to accommodation, catering, leisure facilities within the resort and the amenities available,“ Maguire enumerates. The British were even reportedly interested in the weather and wind conditions so that they could prepare the athletes as faithfully as possible for the conditions that were to be experienced at the Budapest championships. „After the tour, we were sure that with its extensive range of sporting facilities and services within one complex, it would be the best place for our athletes to prepare for the World Championships in Budapest. The variety of services and facilities available convinced us that our athletes will be preparing in top-class conditions in the crucial period leading up to the Championships,“ says Stephen Maguire.
They appreciated the location and proximity
The British team particularly appreciated the location – they liked the fact that the x-bionic® sphere has good accessibility from the airport and, especially for the athletes from the endurance disciplines, who found the close proximity to the Danube and the dam great. „Having everything we needed under one roof made the whole logistics and management a lot easier for the members of the team,“ says Maguire. He adds that if a championship or similar competition were to be held near the resort again in the future, the x-bionic® sphere would definitely be in their viewfinder.
