A
tracking and
monitoring system for
athletes. A small
transponder is attached to a
runner's
shoelaces or worn on an
anklet for
triathletes . Using
radio-frequency-identification (
RFID), the
ChampionChip received and
energizing signal when the
athlete crosses a
mat. The transponder then transmit an
identifying code to a nearby
receiver.
In addition to being useful for recording actual scores for athletes (in many events, an athlete may not cross the start line for several minutes), these chips are useful for real-time tracking of the participants of a race. To date, only the Boston Marathon, 2000, has been wholly successful at this, due to their use of Akamai to deliver their content. Other major events have had their websites fail under load.