\u201cAn ACL injury today can be career-ending for a female athlete, but for their male counterparts, no longer,\u201d Napolitano said.<\/p>\n
In an email to KQED, Chang noted that the first phase of research will focus on identifying the most common injuries to establish baseline data that doesn\u2019t currently exist. This includes analyzing return-to-play protocols and the mental and physical variables that affect recovery.<\/p>\n
The project, which will likely span multiple years, will begin with collegiate athletes before expanding data collection to professional sports leagues and other academic institutions.<\/p>\n
Napolitano, the former Secretary of Homeland Security from 2009 to 2013, said these risks carry over from the field to national defense. She noted that a significant number of women who are first responders, in the military and law enforcement, are former athletes, yet they are often held to training standards or equipped with gear designed based on male biometrics.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere at Berkeley, you can address a gender equity issue while at the same time improving national security,\u201d Napolitano said during the launch event.<\/p>\n
Dr. Chang explained the physiological crossover between a midfielder on the soccer pitch and a soldier on the field, as both groups face high physical training demands and require similar mental fortitude.<\/p>\n \u201cIf either woman is experiencing menstrual cycle-related cramping and low back pain, for example, their performance metrics, perceived wellness ratings, and objective sleep quality measurements may be impacted,\u201d Chang wrote in an email. \u201cAnd thus their ability to perform their sports and job duties may be affected as well.\u201d<\/p>\n According to university officials, the program will utilize UC Berkeley\u2019s College of Computing, Data Science, and Society to feed this data into machine learning models. The goal is to identify patterns that human analysis might miss \u2014 predicting injury risks, optimizing recovery times and tailoring nutrition plans specifically for female physiology.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is an ambitious endeavor,\u201d said UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons. \u201cWhat we learn from this initiative will lead to the creation of new tools \u2014 tools that can be commercialized and brought to market.\u201d<\/p>\n The partnership also offers the university a chance to turn student-athletes into pioneers, said Jenny Simon-O\u2019Neill, Cal\u2019s co-athletic director. She highlighted the university\u2019s history of producing elite talent like Alex Morgan and Missy Franklin.<\/p>\n \u201cWe strongly believe that we have a unique opportunity in the collegiate sports environment to develop leaders of tomorrow,\u201d Simon-O\u2019Neill said. \u201cOur student athletes understand the importance of innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.kqed.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2019\/06\/RS38004_rowing_-_sam_harnett-qut.jpg\")