For the tenth consecutive time Mondo participates in the Olympic Games as an Official Supplier. The Mondotrack at the Olympic Stadium in London and equipment for the various disciplines of athletics are among the highlights of the many materials and technical services provided.
The London 2012 Olympic Games are the tenth consecutive olympics in a row where Mondo has participated, a historic achievement. "It's been 34 years since the signing of first contract, for Montreal in 1976 - said Maurizio Stroppiana, CEO of Mondo SPA. On May 28, 2010 the agreement with the Organizing Committee of London 2012 Olympic Games (LOCOG ) was officially signed. I was honored and proud to sign the contract to supply our tenth Olympic: Mondo continues to be a constant reference and indispensable to the success of all sports events at an international level. "By signing the agreement by which Mondo has become Official Supplier for Sports Flooring and Equipment of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, it renewed for the tenth consecutive time the company's relationship with the most anticipated sporting event organizers, a relationship based upon culture, sport and technology at the level of performance and safety for the athlete. "On the Mondo tracks I won my first world record and won several Olympic medals, so I'm sure the company will provide excellent service and products, in line with previous editions of the Olympics and with our project in which we are working with international partners up close, "said Sebastian Coe, Chairman of the London Olympic Committee.
As the Official Supplier, Mondo not only provided the materials but all the logistics and technical support both in the phases, during and after the event. During the Games the focus will be, no doubt, on the athletics track at the Olympic Stadium, which will host the competitions of the Games. The athletes will compete on the Mondotrack surface, presented for the first time for the 2008 Beijing Games. It has been adapted for the London event to the specific needs of the stadium and the English climate. It is the red color, combined with gray for the outlying areas with a dimension of 16,000 square meters. The track of the Olympic Stadium aims to surpass the great results obtained from Beijing, where they were 38 records set, including global, Olympic, continental and category, without regard to personal records. In addition to the Olympics, Mondo has installed two other Mondotracks: one for the 80 meters warm up area used prior to the race, located underneath the main grandstand of the Olympic Stadium, and a 400 meter, the same as for competition, placed next to the stadium and destined for the warm ups of the athletes.
The potential of the Olympic track were put to the test by the young British athletes, on May 4-7, 2012, when they participated in the British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS), who hosted the first official meets on the track at the London Olympic Stadium. Particularly enthusiastic was sprinter Aikines-Aryeetey, who won the 100m,when interviewed by SkySports, it is out of balance by establishing a new world record on its distance: " I think this track is ready to host an Olympics that will no doubt be very fast. Mondo is the fastest, it's beautiful. " The boy added: "Wherever I run I like to do a test with a cricket ball: if I bounce on a normal track the ball bounces up to the knee, on a Mondo track, however, comes up alongside. This means that all the energy they waste on the surface it bounces back to help improve the performance, so there's no excuse not to run fast. " Very positive comments came from the Irish Justine Kinney, winning the 400 m hurdles at BUCS, his first race ever ran on the Olympic track: "The track is amazing - he said - seemed to fly."
A track like Mondotrack was not born overnight. Since the 80s, the Mondo Research Center began to collaborate with leading laboratories engaged in the study of science, biomechanics, including the University of Zurich, University of Rome, Harvard University, Institute of Biomechanics Valencia, the Human Performance Laboratory, and the University of Calgary. The aim was to make a track that offered a high level of comfort without decreasing athletic performance. The breakthrough came in 2007 when a new survey conducted by the engineering team and Mondo by University of Pavia enabled a completely new approach for the realization of the surface, created with a new texture and a substrate with a high performance hexagonal geometry.***
Mondotrack is the result of a long period of study that was conducted by Professor Remo Lombardi Mauro Testa, senior researcher in biomechanics working alongside Mondo and the University of Pavia. "Together with them we managed to develop a system able to measure the athlete's performance on this track," says Giampiero Gambino, then in charge of product development team for Mondo. "We have integrated sensors - he says - in special insoles that athletes have inserted in the footwear worn during practice. With a bluetooth connection these sensors were transmitting to a computer the data relating to the pressure of the foot during the various phases of the rolling. In the meantime, four test tracks had been prepared on which the athletes ran, allowing us to see what was working. So we were able to verify that the path taken was the right one. "
"By analyzing the rotational movement of the foot - recalls Dr. Head -, we have modified the shape of the alveoli that are located below the track, which are in contact with the asphalt. The concept was to develop a surface that would allow the deformation of the track according to the movement of the foot. We realized that a hexagonal shape, slightly elongated in the direction of the race helped the athlete to feel a great sense of comfort and improved performance too. "
Thus was created the Mondotrack, a track that combines practicality, performance and sense of comfort. It is a sports floor made of prefabricated natural and synthetic rubber, calendered and vulcanized, consisting of two layers with different biomechanical characteristics. Recently, Mondo engineers have perfected the design by supporting the track with the introduction of a backing with an elongated diamond shape, with no 90 ° angles. In this way, the cell walls flex easily in any direction, and not only forward, giving the support and cushioning ideal for training, while ensuring an incredible reaction time for the competition. The increased safety is guaranteed by a better shock absorption, while the higher compression and lower vertical pressure on the foot provide a level of comfort never achieved before. From the point of view of the athletic performance, the increased contact area and the better lateral support of the foot, guarantee a much higher energy return.
A difference in the polyurethane tracks, where the surface is in contact with the foot and has the damping effect, whereas Mondotrack shock absorption occurs in the part below. In this way, the upper layer of the track can be optimized to improve the performance. Another benefit results in greater traction: athletes can do without the traditional cleats, by choosing those edges which do not penetrate the surface, in so doing will prevent the wasting of energy due to the effort it takes to release the foot and spikes from the surface. Furthermore, the intrinsic properties of rebound in the rubber acts as a platform, generating a much higher energy return each time that the foot is detached from the surface. Do not underestimate the strength of the material that makes up the track: Mondotrack is designed to continue performing and looking great even after years of use. Even when it is put to the test, such as in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics, where it is called upon to withstand the weight of large stages that characterize such events.
After more than two years of research, development and innovation, Mondo has officially unveiled its new line of equipment for high competition "Gamma 2012", which will be used in the various disciplines of the London Olympic and Paralympic Games. The presentation took place in Zaragoza, where the General Director of Mondo Iberica, Santiago Palomera, did the honors, accompanied by Spanish athletes Quiñónez Jackson, Isabel Macías and José María Poves.
The 2012 range of equipment has been renovated both in terms of design aesthetics, following the direction of the Games Organizing Committee (LOCOG), as well as listening to the suggestions of the judges and athletes engaged in different sports disciplines. As for athletics, the new range includes, in addition to the obstacles and the lane marking cones, the billboards and electronic measuring instruments, equipment for the high jump, the discus distance marker boxes, discus rack and carts. The 2012 range is characterized by red, which replaces the traditional blue used by Mondo for the equipment. The look of the products that we will see in London, however, is customized with the Olympic colors, as requested by LOCOG and will be revealed only at the time of the competitions.