Mikel Aingeru Becerro

Okay. Let's lay it on the line up-front. Science shapes every aspect of our lives. It generates knowledge with broad applications, including sports. Some sports have embraced data science and have evolved tremendously over the last decades. Yet, data analytics in roller hockey is in its infancy at best. As a professional scientist and hockey coach, it doesn't make much sense to me. I don't get it. Why don't we use the scientific method to make progress? Why do we stand on perceptions and not facts? Some may argue that some of our perceptions are very accurate. Others, however, are not because we are inherently biased. We need factual data and rational, analytical tools to generate unbiased knowledge to support our decisions and make progress efficiently. From my unique perspective, I decided to be proactive and contribute my two cents to further understanding the game we all love. 

Since I joined the Santutxu Hockey Taldea with my best friends in the 80's, I've rolled through life. Later on, in the 90's I became a coach and pursued a scientific career as a marine biologist. Today, I work for the Spanish Research Council and coach at the Lloret Hockey Club. Since I don't want to influence anybody because of who I am but make you think about what I say, I cut the usual mambo jumbo bragging bluff commonly found in these types of sections. The onus is on you, my beloved reader. You read and decide whether or not the reading makes sense to you and whether or not you take some profit out of it. Everything else is secondary.