Digital Technology in Sport

David Atienza Alonso is the Associate Vice-President of Research Center and Platforms at EPFL, a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and director of the Embedded Systems Laboratory (ESL) at EPFL, Switzerland. He received his MSc and Ph.D. degrees in computer science and engineering from UCM, Spain, and IMEC, Belgium, in 2001 and 2005, respectively. His research interests include the design of smart edge AI devices and low-power Internet-of-Thing (IoT) systems, as well as novel sustainable computing architectures for cloud computing and data centers design. He has worked extensively in edge AI architectures for wireless body sensor nodes and smart embedded systems, and HW/SW reconfigurable systems for AI and Machine Learning systems, with key companies worldwide (IBM, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, Huawei, TI, Oracle, HP, Intel, etc.).

Pascal Vuilliomenet is the Strategic Project Manager at EPFL’s Vice Presidency for Innovation and Education. He is the co-initiator and host of SmartMove, an academic network for sport that brings together nine academic institutions and aims at promoting and implementing skills in the world of sport. Additionally, he co-initiated the National Thematic Network – NTN Innovation Booster for sport and physical exercise. His experience includes serving as the EPFL Project Manager for the Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Games, where he oversaw projects that integrated EPFL labs and promoted the SmartMove network to a diverse audience.

Alexandre Alahi is an Associate Professor at EPFL, where he leads the Visual Intelligence for Transportation laboratory (VITA). His lab works on a new type of AI to make autonomous vehicles a safe reality. In 2022-2023, Alexandre was recognised as one of the top 100 Most Influential Scholar in Computer Vision over the past 10 years. His work has been licensed to several companies and covered internationally by BBC, abc, PBS, Euronews, Wall street journal, and other national news outlets around the world. Alexandre has also co-founded multiple startups such as Visiosafe, and won several startup competitions. He was elected as one of the Top 20 Swiss Venture leaders in 2010.

Andreas Burg is an Associate Professor at EPFL, where he leads the Telecommunications Circuits Laboratory in the School of Engineering. With expertise in the design and prototyping of advanced circuits and systems for telecommunications, Andreas has been involved in the development of over 25 ASICs throughout his career. His research focuses on low-power VLSI signal processing, communication algorithms, and hardware optimization for both wireless and wired technologies. Prior to joining EPFL, Andreas co-founded Celestrius, an ETH Zurich spinoff specializing in MIMO wireless communication, where he served as Director for VLSI. He has also held research positions at Siemens Semiconductors, Bell Labs, and ETH Zurich. Andreas has been recognised with several prestigious awards, including the Willi Studer Award and ETH Medals for his diploma and Ph.D. work. Andreas Burg is also the Co-Founder & Head of Technology of RAAAM Memory Technologies.

José Miranda is a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at the Embedded Systems Lab (ESL) at EPFL. His work primarily focuses on advanced embedded systems, particularly in the fields of energy-efficient computing and edge artificial intelligence. He has contributed to various projects aimed at developing innovative solutions for personalised health monitoring and efficient data processing in wearable devices. Additionally, José has co-authored several publications related to biosignal processing and optimisation of hardware architectures for AI applications

Pietro Molino is the Co-Founder and Principal Consultant at Innova Sport, a company that provides technological solutions and services to sport organisations. Innova Sport combines deep expertise in the sports industry with advanced technology and data capabilities to help clients optimise their operations and achieve their goals. The company specialises in data gathering, custom reporting, and actionable insights to support data-driven decision-making. Before founding Innova Sport, Pietro spent over seven years at FIFA, where he held key roles such as Reporting & Data Engineering Senior Manager and TMS Data & Reports Group Leader. With his extensive experience in sports technology and data, Pietro brings a strategic perspective to leveraging analytics in sports management.

Quirin Söhnlein is the Head of Performance at Lausanne Hockey Club (LHC), where he leads data-driven performance optimisation for the team. He oversees the use of cutting-edge technologies, including sensor-based data collection and advanced video analytics, to track player and team performance. This data allows the club to evaluate critical metrics such as impact force, skating efficiency, and team chemistry, optimising individual and collective performance to meet the team’s strategic objectives. With a unique academic background that includes a bachelor’s degree in Sport Science, a master’s degree in Genetics and Biochemistry, and an additional bachelor’s in Psychology, Quirin brings an interdisciplinary approach to his role. Before joining LHC in 2019, he spent nine years with Red Bull, working on performance projects at their football academy in Ghana, followed by roles at renowned clubs: New York Red Bulls and FC Red Bull Salzburg in football, and later transitioning to hockey with EHC Red Bull München.

Patrick Bertholet is a Senior Product Manager at SECUTIX, where he has been leading a team of skilled Product Managers since June 2022. In this role, he oversees the development of an innovative all-in-one ticketing solutions for events and venues worldwide. Patrick manages the company’s main product, and is responsible for creating business stories and coordinating solution design. He acts as a key liaison among Customer Success Managers, Sales, and customers to gather market needs and communicate product updates effectively. Additionally, he arbitrates release scope and capacity with leadership and stakeholders, ensuring alignment and efficiency.

Christophe Constantin is an Innovation Leader at Logitech. With over 15 years of experience in innovation leadership and technology management at world-leading organisations, he brings a unique blend of BROAD perspective, DEEP expertise, PRAGMATIC solutions and OUT-OF-THE-BOX mindset. At Logitech, he has actively participated in a variety of explorations and business ventures. This includes developing a disruptive device at the intersection of augmented reality and sport performance, as well as leading a seed project about an innovative online training platform tailored for esport athletes.