Wales could ease England's penalty pain

Sports scientists at the University of Wales, Swansea, have bridged the gap between theory and practice by building a laboratory high enough for trampolining, long enough for penalty kicks and wide enough to accommodate full-size goal posts.

The new 3-D motion analysis facility is fitted with 12 high-speed digital cameras that record the movements of athletes. One project already under way is using the equipment to discover how footballers position their bodies to fool the goal keeper into diving the wrong way during a penalty. Golfers will be able to analyse their swing technique by a click of the mouse.