The Science and Engineering Behind Canada's Quest to "Own the Podium" at the Sochi Winter Olympics

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jan. 30, 2014) - ATTENTION: Science and sport editors and reporters

For 18 days in Sochi, Canada's top winter athletes will be put to the test against their international peers. But along with the years of training that make a world-ranked athlete, there's also a lot of science and engineering.

Researchers funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) are available to share their expertise in a variety of fields from sports equipment design to coaching improvements.

NSERC Experts:

Age- and sex-related differences in how the brain controls skilled movement. Dr. Lauren Sergio, Associate Professor, School of Kinesiology and Health Science, York University, Toronto

Train smart - better training strategies for athletic endurance. Dr. René Turcotte, Associate Professor/Chair, Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, McGill University, Montreal.

Research on the edge - making better hockey blades. Dr. Nicolas Giguère, P Eng., Manager - Advanced Alloys Center, Quebec Metallurgy Center, Cégep de Trois-Rivières.

What makes elite athletes different? - research on athletes' perceptual-cognitive abilities: Dr. Jocelyn Faubert, Full Professor & NSERC-Essilor Research Chair, School of Optometry, Université de Montréal.

Pushed to the limit - research on human endurance. Does the brain know what the muscles are doing? Dr. Patrick Neary, Professor, Department of Kinesiology and Health Studies, University of Regina.

Faster, safer, stronger - research for high performance hockey equipment. Dr. David Pearsall, Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, McGill University, Montreal.

NSERC is a federal agency that helps make Canada a country of discoverers and innovators for all Canadians. The agency supports almost 30,000 post-secondary students and postdoctoral fellows in their advanced studies. NSERC promotes discovery by funding approximately 12,000 professors every year and fosters innovation by encouraging over 2,400 Canadian companies to participate and invest in post-secondary research projects.