This summer the University of Oregon will be the location for the US Olympic Team Track and Field Trials that will determine who will represent the United States in the 2008 Beijing Games. As you might imagine, work has been underway at Hayward Field and other facilities for months in preparation for this event. That this work would include resurfacing the track, laying new sod, or adding grandstands or lights, wouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Yet there has also been a lot going on from an information technology perspective to support this event. The article titled "Getting Ready for Eugene 08: Behind the Scenes at Hayward Field" tells of some of the work Information Services staff has undertaken in this regard.

Preparing the site for the trials is only one aspect of the story of how computer-based technology is being used in athletics at the University of Oregon. Working with UO Athletics, we were able to easily build a theme issue of IT Connections that allowed us to share some of the innovative uses of technology being employed to increase athletic performance, as well as care for the health and well being of our student athletes.

What is particularly interesting is to see how UO Athletics is making use of common products in new and creative ways to benefit our student athletes. Who would have guessed that iTunes and GarageBand programs would be adapted for use in a sports psychology program for athletics? Or that cameras and performance metrics would go underwater in a hydrotherapy pool? Even computer gaming technology has been adopted in an instrument that improves muscular and mental agility.

The serious business of nutrition and health monitoring is also highlighted in this issue. While we are interested in the technology being used to monitor health, or the "coolness" of the Bod Pod, the integration of these activities with educational goals cannot be missed. While student athletes are focused on performance they are also learning about the impact of nutrition on performance. These are lessons that will benefit our athletes after their days as students are over.

For spectators at the trials, our friends in the Department of Geography's InfoGraphics Lab have created some dynamic maps that will help us navigate our way through venues like the "fan festival area." These very useful maps will be available prior to the trials on the Internet at http://infographics.uoregon.edu/eugene08.html.

All this focus on Olympic athletes even has inspired us to add a new piece of technology to our student lab, the "Walkstation." Making use of a low-speed treadmill and a special work surface, the Walkstation allows a student to work on a computer while walking at an easygoing pace of two miles an hour. (Okay, not exactly Olympic training pace, but enough to burn a few calories and increase productivity according to the Mayo Clinic doctor who developed it.) We'll have the Walkstation at our student labs this summer and I encourage you to drop by and give it a test run.

It's an exciting time as we anticipate the best track and field athletes coming from across the country to compete for positions on the Olympic Track and Field Team. And it's exciting for us knowing that information technology has had a role to play in preparing athletes, as well as supporting those who attend the event. We look forward to cheering on the athletes at the trials, as well as working with our university athletes and the athletic staff as they strive for excellence in the days ahead.