Development and presentation of the first design process model for sports equipment design

Many design industries have design process models specific to their discipline. However, there is no design process model specific to the design of sports equipment. Sports equipment is highly user-centred to improve the sporting performance of an athlete; therefore, it is anticipated that the outcome of this study will have an impact on the design discipline as a whole, as lessons can be learnt from the user-centred nature of sports design. This paper reports on a practical study and followed a rigorous, iterative approach of development and evaluation. The paper presents the development and validation of a sports design process model with the outcome of a sports design process model that is reflective of sports design practice in industry.