VALD acquires SmartSpeed from Fusion Sport
We are excited to announce we have acquired the SmartSpeed Timing Gate System and accompanying SmartJump Portable Jump Mat from Fusion Sport.
SmartSpeed was launched in 2004 as the world’s first wireless timing gate system and has gone on to set the standard for speed and agility testing.
Popular with high-performance professionals and used widely by clubs in elite sporting leagues such as the National Basketball Association (NBA), National Football League (NFL) and English Premier League (EPL), the acquisition of SmartSpeed and SmartJump expands upon VALD’s already-established product line with immediate effect.
Watch the interview
VALD CEO Laurie Malone sat down with Fusion Sport CEO Dr Markus Deutsch and Performance Specialist Dr Ian McKeown to discuss the reasons behind the acquisition and talk more broadly about the future of sports technology.
VALD co-founder and CEO Laurie Malone says it’s humbling to add such a well-regarded laser timing gate system to the company’s growing range of products.
“We’re really keen to see where we can take it. We have already identified some exciting areas where we can improve and integrate SmartSpeed with our other systems,” Malone said.
“We’ve got a dedicated team that solely focuses on this aspect of hardware-software optimisation and how we make it easier to use and more valuable to users,” he added.
A broader range of objective data
The addition of SmartSpeed and SmartJump to the product range provides a more holistic training and testing suite and allows high-performance professionals and practitioners to collect a wider range of objective data for better decision-making.
“VALD doesn’t tell a coach what to do, it doesn’t tell a practitioner what to do, it doesn’t say ‘this athlete’s injured or this patient’s injured or this soldier’s injured’,” Malone said.
“It just says: ‘here’s some data which would’ve traditionally been subjective – which we have objectified – in a format that is easy to understand and allows you to make a decision’.
“That’s our philosophy and we see SmartSpeed fitting perfectly into that philosophy.”
Democratising access
With VALD focused on democratising access to high-performance technology, Malone says SmartSpeed users should eventually expect to see some changes.
“You’re probably going to see some different things in relation to pricing options. We want to make this technology accessible to as many organisations as we can,” Malone said.
“There really should be no barrier for performance centres or elite teams to have tech-integrated facilities.”
With data analysis increasingly viewed as key within an industry where even small margins can make a big difference, the acquisition of a sprint timing system like SmartSpeed allows for the collection of even more objective data.
“Whether it’s for testing or for training, it shouldn’t matter – we should be collecting more data,” Malone said.
You can now obtain the entire SmartSpeed range and its accessories from VALD. These include the SmartSpeed Dash (formerly PT), SmartSpeed Pro and SmartJump.
Want to learn more? View the SmartSpeed range.
Or send us an email at info@vald.com if you have any questions.
