Siemens Blood Gas Analyser Is Team GB’s ‘Secret Weapon’

The GB Rowing Team has announced that it is to use the Siemens RAPIDPoint® Blood Gas Analyser to assist the team’s training and performance. The Blood Gas Analyser measures blood pH and bicarbonate from small blood samples, providing valuable performance data on the athletes as they adapt to high intensity training.

The GB Rowing Teams ‘secret weapon’ will provide information about the athletes’ anaerobic system and its contribution to race performance.

Mark Homer, physiologist with the GB Rowing Team states, “The benefits and effects of training are difficult to measure in the field. While we can effectively monitor aerobic fitness, the adaptation to high intensity training is more difficult to track. For the past two years we have been using the Siemens RAPIDPoint to measure blood pH and bicarbonate. Changes in resting bicarbonate levels over time give an indication of anaerobic adaptation; for example, increased bicarbonate levels demonstrate an increased ability to buffer acidic muscular conditions at high intensities. This information also helps us to understand the differences between rowers; areas for improvement; and the importance of this area of physiology to rowing performance in general. The information we have gathered has allowed us to track how individuals are adapting to high intensity training towards the climax of the racing season.”

Helen Glover, World Cup winner 2011 and World Championship silver medallist 2010, women’s pair comments, “As international rowers we are used to undergoing various testing procedures during training but the testing involved with the RAPIDPoint is painless and non-invasive. The results have been very helpful to me in understanding how my body reacts to intense periods of training. As an athlete who has experimented with Sodium Bicarbonate, information regarding its effect on my physiology and the optimum supplementation strategy is crucial.”

Afia Boamah, Blood Gas and Stratus CS Product Manager at Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics states, “Siemens is delighted to assist the GB Rowing Team. We are extremely pleased that our RAPIDPoint Blood Gas Analyser has been of value in the current training program. It is a small, low maintenance and easy-to-use system making it ideal for hospital critical care environments, plus a huge range of other testing environments, including sport.“