Sports Science Dept. Established under National Teams’ Monitoring Center

Iran NOC; Tehran: During the inauguration ceremony, Dr. Mahdi Alinejad, the NOC Secretary-General presented appointment letters to the department members, emphasizing that sustained success in elite sports requires scientific approaches. He noted that the NOC is uniquely positioned to bridge sports and academia, ensuring policy-making, supervision, and support in areas where federations require assistance. Dr. Mahdi Alinejad highlighted that scientific programs for national teams often require financial backing, and some federations may lack the resources to act independently. As an example, he cited the Committee’s initiative to fund sports psychology services upon federations’ request, stressing that similar measures should be implemented in fields such as nutrition and strength & conditioning. He urged the creation of greater demand for scientific services within federations, noting that motivated athletes and coaches welcome any opportunity to enhance performance. Looking ahead to the 2025 Asian Youth Games in Bahrain, the Islamic Solidarity Games in Riyadh, and the 2026 Asian Games, NOC Secretary-General called for full utilization of national scientific expertise to improve training conditions and achieve a significant leap towards the 2028 Olympic Games. Dr. Reza Shajie, Director of the National Teams Monitoring Center, expressed appreciation for the leadership’s support and outlined the department’s objectives: enhancing analytical capabilities, timely analysis of testing results and training programs, updating national physical fitness norms for priority sports, accurately forecasting team performance, standardizing training periodization, and empowering coaches and conditioning staff. These efforts, he said, will help federations and technical teams better understand themselves and their competitors, paving the way for stronger international performances.