Swansea University partners with INEOS Grenadiers to identify cycling’s next stars

Swansea University has announced a new partnership with the INEOS Grenadiers cycling team aimed at transforming how elite cycling talent is identified.

The collaboration will see academics from the university working alongside one of the world’s most successful professional cycling teams to develop cutting-edge digital tools designed to spot emerging and often overlooked riders earlier in their careers.

The project is being led by researchers from Swansea University’s Applied Sports, Technology, Exercise and Medicine (A-STEM) Research Centre.

The A-STEM centre already has an established track record of working with elite sport, collaborating with organisations including Swansea City AFC, the Scarlets, Ospreys, Swim Wales and the UK Sports Institute.

The first joint research project, “Towards the development of digital twins for efficient talent identification in professional cycling”, will involve a dedicated PhD student exploring how data-driven systems can support more accurate and efficient talent identification. The aim is to create digital models capable of tracking athlete development and highlighting potential elite performers despite the unpredictable nature of sporting progression.

Partnership

Professor Liam Kilduff, Head of the A-STEM Research Centre and Professor of Performance Science at Swansea University, said the collaboration reflected the university’s long-standing commitment to industry partnership.

“At Swansea University, we take pride in building strong relationships with industry leaders to ensure mutual benefit,” he said. “Some of our partnerships have lasted more than two decades and delivered major impacts in elite sport. We are excited to work with INEOS Grenadiers on this innovative project.”

INEOS Grenadiers Performance Director Dr Scott Drawer said data science and artificial intelligence represented the next major leap for professional cycling.

He said: “The emerging fields of data science and AI are the next frontier for the sport. These projects form part of a large portfolio of work with academia and industry to accelerate our understanding and application to our sport.

“My personal experience of working with Swansea has always been positive and delivered direct impact to the way we work.”

Data

Professional cycling generates vast quantities of performance data, but its sheer volume and inconsistency can make identifying talent challenging. The project will combine INEOS Grenadiers’ internal performance metrics with publicly available race data to monitor junior riders across selected countries.

Automated systems will be developed to flag standout performances and track progression, creating a continuous “digital thread” linking training history, competition results and development pathways.

The initiative also aligns with the aims of the National Institute for Sport and Health, based at Swansea University. Professor Keith Lloyd, Director of the institute, said the partnership demonstrated how research excellence could be translated into practical solutions.

“This collaboration brings together researchers, practitioners and industry partners to drive innovation in sport performance and health,” he said.