Blog Sports

Sports Science Reveals the Secret Behind Cristina Neagu's Unstoppable Handball Shot

Is Cristina Neagu really the best handball player in the world? Red Bull put together a team, that included a sports scientist from KINEXON, to help answer this question. Here’s what they discovered.

European handball player Cristina Neagu is the subject of a documentary that uses scientists from the sports analytics company KINEXON to try to figure out what makes her shot so hard to stop.

She stands alone as the only player to have secured the International Handball Federation’s World Player of the Year” award four times and has been voted into the All-Star Team at the European Championship four times and a staggering seven times at the Champions League. 

But what defines a great handball player? And how do you measure it? 

A group of researchers at Red Bull wanted to know, so they teamed with KINEXON to find out and capture it all in the 20-minute documentary-style video called The Science Behind Cristina Neagus Unstoppable Shot.”

KINEXON Sports Science Consultant Breaks Down The Data with Cristina Neagu

KINEXON sports analytics company consultant Michael Elmer reviews data with Cristina Neagu of Romania during the filming for The Science Behind Cristina Neagu’s Unstoppable Shot in Bucharest, Romani

Michael Elmer is a former professional ice hockey coach who is now a KINEXON sports scientist. He specializes in consulting handball players and coaches on using sports analytics to fine tune their games. 

In a separate video (link below) he explains a little bit more about the IMU and LPS technology he used to analyze Christine’s shot. It’s the same technology we use for many of our indoor sports teams including handball, volleyball, hockey, and arena football. 

Watch: KINEXON Handball Technology Explained

Player and Ball Tracking Unveil the Secrets Behind Her Powerful Handball Shot

KINEXON is a sports analytics company that employs sports scientists like Michael Elmer who provide players in many sports, like European handball player, Cristina Neagu.

He was asked to analyze Cristina’s shot, using KINEXON’s PERFORM LPS tracking system at the Polyvalent Hall of Bucharest. 20 anchors were mounted on the ceiling of the facility to provide real-time data and Cristina wore a player tracking device in a vest. 

Michael also used KINEXON’s ball tracking technology to detect throwing actions. KINEXON provided the same type of technology during the European Handball Championships.

Watch "The Science Behind the Shot"

European handball player Cristina Neagu is considered to be the best women's player in the world and her shot was analyzed by sports scientists at the sports analytics company KINEXON in an attempt to find out what makes her so dominant.

Click the button below to see the full 20-minute video, and if you have any questions about the LPS or ball tracking systems that you’ll see, feel free to contact us at any time. Enjoy the show. 


Watch: The Science Behind Cristina Neagu’s Shot

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