The 2020 Olympics was held from July 23 to August 8 in Tokyo. Behind the thrilling events we’re all watching on TV are years of rigorous training and dedication. Standards are in place to assure that training is safe and productive for these athletes as well as millions of amateur athletes who practice the sports on a more casual level.

Archery

Archers keep themselves safe and their performance consistent with the help of standards that guide bows, arrows, and safety equipment. ASTM International, a member and audited designator of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), has published many archery standards, such as ASTM F1436-11, Standard Guide for Center Serving Diameter Dimensions for Archery Bow Strings.

Golf

The ubiquitous golf carts present at any golfer’s training sessions are guided by ANSI/OPEI Z130.1, Golf Cars—Safety and Performance Specifications, a standard developed by ANSI member and accredited standards developer the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI).

Taekwondo and Karate

Both martial arts sports require protective equipment for the safety of their athletes; this equipment is guided by many standards such as ISO 21924-5, Protective equipment for martial arts – Part 5: Additional requirements and test methods for genital protectors and abdominal protectors. This standard was developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee (TC) 83, Sports and other recreational facilities and equipment, subcommittee (SC) 6, Martial arts.

Rowing

Athletes at the Olympic level spend countless hours on the water, but rowing training can be done in the gym, too, with stationary equipment. One standard that guides the safety of this equipment is ISO 20957-7, Stationary training equipment—Part 7: Rowing equipment, additional specific safety requirements and test methods. This document was also developed by ISO/TC 83.

(Source: ANSI)