Ten years ago, we had an idea that sounded a bit crazy to traditionalists: what if we turned the front wall of a squash court into a giant touchscreen? Today, we are celebrating a full decade of our company LYMB.iO and interactiveSQUASH. We are kicking off 10 days of celebration to thank the community that made it all possible.

Where It All Began

To kick off the festivities, we released a special video interview featuring our founder and our very first developer. Take a trip down memory lane as they discuss the early prototypes, the challenges of tracking a squash ball at 200 km/h, and how the system evolved into the global training tool and entertainment magnet it is today.

What Does “LYMB.iO” Actually Mean?

Since our rebranding, we are often asked about the meaning behind LYMB.iO. The name represents the three core pillars of our technology and mission:

• Limbs: The human arms and legs we use every day to move, throw, and kick.
• The Limbic System: The complex emotional nervous system deep within the brain. It manages emotions, behaviors, motivation, and long-term memory—the exact feelings of joy and drive we want to trigger when people play our games.
• iO: Input/Output, representing our tech-driven impact tracking foundation and our commitment to constant software innovation.

10-Days of Court Celebration

We are bringing the anniversary directly to your courts. For the next 10 days, all interactiveSQUASH systems (without an existing custom menu) will feature our festive 10-Year Celebration Menu.

We have also rolled out three exclusive, custom-themed games for the occasion: Darts – 10 Year Edition, Tic Tac Toe – 10 Year Edition, and a fun Anniversary Quiz. It’s the perfect time to get on the court, warm up with some target practice, and celebrate with us.

Thank You to the Squash Community

To the coaches, pros, facility owners, and players who believed in the digital future of squash: Thank you. Here is to the next 10 years of innovation, movement, and rallies!

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Munich, 16.06.21: interactiveSQUASH today announced the collaborative partnership with World Squash Champion Nick Matthew, OBE to drive participation in squash by bringing it to the digital age. As the new Brand Ambassador Nick will support and enhance the promotion, perception and participation of squash through the interactiveSQUASH product line. 

After playing squash on the world stage for 20 years and delivering squash coaching for more than five years, Nick has always understood the importance of inspiring the next generation of players:

“The sport of squash needs innovations such as interactiveSQUASH to ensure squash continues to be played on the world’s biggest stages. I am convinced technology is the driving force to maximize talent, unlock potential and glue aspiring young players to the court. Together with interactiveSQUASH, we aim to capitalize on the opportunities digitalization offers for court operators, coaches and players to boost the future success of our sport.“, said Nick Matthew, OBE.

The power of gamification attracts new players to the court

Gamification is one of the biggest up and coming trends of the sports industry at the moment. Merging real sports with interactive gameplay is a huge opportunity for the sport of squash to attract new players by lowering the entry barriers for beginners and kids to try out the sport for themselves.

Advanced digital training modules allow experienced players to test movements and skills specifically related to competitive play.„We strongly believe gamification and cutting-edge technology play a key role to make squash more accessible and engaging to the existing and new generations of players,“ explained Markos Kern, inventor and CEO of interactiveSQUASH.

“The new partnership with Nick will help us to reach a broader audience and raise awareness for the opportunities innovative technology has to offer as the sport of squash ushers in a new era. Working with such a talent and technology enthusiasts inspires our team of developers and engineers even more to display this level of greatness, pushing the limits of what technology can do even further.“ 

interactiveSQUASH community is growing

The latest installation in the National Squash Center Manchester is the next highlight in our UK expansion. With two systems already installed at Centerparcs in Whinfell Forest and Elveden Forest as well as Birmingham University the interactiveSQUASH community is growing continuously. 

What is interactiveSQUASH? How can squash center benefit from an upgrade?

With a broad selection of different kind of games, from retro arcade to the more creative and educational ones, every game has been developed to meet fun and entertainment with the need of improving players’ skills like hand-eye coordination, speed, strength and reaction time.

InteractiveSQUASH training: InteractiveSQUASH is the most sophisticated digital training system for racket sports on the market. Training modules which have been designed in consultation with professional coaches and professional players can test movements and skills specifically related to competitive play.

InteractiveSQUASH Games: InteractiveSQUASH’s games are designed to get everyone and in particular kids thrilled to jump on court to start playing.

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A new interactiveSQUASH system is ready to welcome squash players in UK.  The National Squash Center is located in the Etihad Campus in East Manchester. Built in 2002 for the Commonwealth Games the centre opened it’s doors to the public shortly after the event.

Since then the location is hosting a range of sporting events such as PSA Squash World Tour tournaments, British Athletic Championships and sporting events from local schools. The center has 7 squash courts including one glass court and now an interactiveSQUASH court.

The interactiveSQUASH system which was joint funded by MCRactive and England Squash is now operational.

Paul Hulme, Sport Strategy Officer: “Innovations such as interactiveSQUASH are important to ensure squash continues to be attractive to new and existing players of all ages and abilities. The digitalization gives us a great opportunity to reach out to new users and showcase the possibilities within the sport. We want to embrace the opportunities it can offer and excite the next generations of players in Manchester and beyond to get involved and play squash“

Lee Wicks new interactiveSQUASH partner in the UK

The interactiveSQUASH installation in Manchester was the first project managed by our new partner Lee Wicks. The head squash coach from the Crowborough Squash Club will work together with Fun With Balls to introduce interactiveSQUASH to squash centers in the UK.

After a long career as a client manager in the IT sector, Lee decided to change his life in order to “only do things he liked as a kid”. One of his passions was squash. So Lee decided to join our mission and uses his technical experience, networking skills, his love for the game and the desire to get children active to attract juniors to the sport.

interactiveSQUASH community is growing

The latest installation in the National Squash Center Manchester is the next highlight in our UK expansion. With two systems already installed at Centerparcs in Whinfell Forest and Elveden Forest as well as Birmingham University the interactiveSQUASH community is growing continuously. 

What is interactiveSQUASH? How can squash center benefit from an upgrade?

With a broad selection of different kind of games, from retro arcade to the more creative and educational ones, every game has been developed to meet fun and entertainment with the need of improving players’ skills like hand-eye coordination, speed, strength and reaction time.

InteractiveSQUASH training: InteractiveSQUASH is the most sophisticated digital training system for racket sports on the market. Training modules which have been designed in consultation with professional coaches and professional players can test movements and skills specifically related to competitive play.

InteractiveSQUASH Games: InteractiveSQUASH’s games are designed to get everyone and in particular kids thrilled to jump on court to start playing.

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How does this Motion Tracking Game works:

The motion tracking detects every step and move of you and your opponent. Pong has been around since 1972 but it has never felt this intense and exciting. Because this time, you are the paddle and by moving around the court, you directly control what’s going on, but so does your opponent. Each player tries to shoot the ball to the others side. Win the Game by breaking your opponents guarded wall behind the paddle. Every hit breaks a brick of your opponent. The player who breaks the wall of the counterpart faster wins the game.

Power UPs:

Our new game “Pong” comes along with some funny Power-Ups to make the game even more exciting. You collect these power-ups by moving to the position where they would be on the court. The ball and paddles are fully driven by actual physics, so use your own momentum on the court to get the ball in game to neck-breaking speeds to beat your opponent. We put following Power Ups in the game to challenge you and your opponent more. Welcome to mixed reality gaming!

What is Motion Tracking?

The motion tracking feature enables to track every step, move and hit of the players in the court, to analyze the players performance in real-time. The system is operated by intelligent A.I. As a result, it let you know if you’re too far or too close to the wall when hitting your drives. The video tracking and analysis feature consist of 4 individual cameras strategically placed within the squash court. It changes how the way how coaches interact with their players.

How can motion tracking technology can be used in squash training?

Ghosting always seems like a boring exercise, isn’t it? With motion tracking you can practice it guided by your interactiveSQUASH court! Follow the lead and be fast! Check your results and improve them over time. The Motion Tracking Game Ghosting replicates typical movement patterns and game situations on the squash court. The app also measures the players’ performance such as distance.

Motion Tracking based analytics

Coaches and players will be able to go over performances or training sessions side by side. Our Motion tracking will provide players with a wealth of statistics. For example, running speed, how fast they’re returning to the ’T’, and much more. Through that it is possible to provide immediate feedback based on real-time video.

Players can analyze their performance and clearly identify necessary areas of improvement. This is crucial for professionals who are continuously seeking to improve their skills. It is also indispensable for beginners who will be able to track their progress.

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Squash has famously been dubbed ‘the world’s healthiest sport’ and it is famous for pushing players’ strength, balance and agility to the limit.

Even casual players admit that it compares to even some of the most energetic high intensity workouts. But squash is also fun and social.

According to a recent report by the World Health Organisation, physical activity drastically improves general health and reduces the risk of certain diseases. In short, we should all do more sport – so why not choose the healthiest one out there?

Before delving into the health benefits of squash, it should be mentioned that just like any workout, warming up is extremely important before playing. This could prevent injury, and lead to better results while playing.

1. It is for everybody

Squash can be played at any age. It is easy to learn (but difficult to master). Furthermore, play styles, games and equipment can be modified to suit every size, gender and skill-level. Research has proven that racket sports improve children’s sociability, motor skills, eyesight and much more.

Jehangir Khan, won the World Amateur Championships at 15, even though he was advised by doctors not to play any sports due to his weak health. He eventually became one of the best players in the world. Since then, many younger players have entered the game. The Essex junior squash league even has competitions for under 13’s now. By contrast, Lance Kinder who only started playing at 40, is Britain’s oldest competitive squash player at the grand age of 80.

2. It is good for your heart

Squash reduces the risk of heart disease by strengthening the heart muscles and preventing blood vessels from becoming clogged.

Scientists at The University of Rochester have proven that playing a racket sport for just three hours per week can lower people’s blood pressure and reduce the risk of developing heart complications. A key to getting a good aerobic workout when playing squash is to keep rest periods brief (between 1-2 minutes at most).

Squash players have an almost tribal loyalty to their chosen sport – that’s what makes them great. But this sense of community has added benefits. Regular contact with your squash partners and friends leads to better social skills and contact with others. This social aspect activates the neural reward circuitry making our mindsets overall more positive – according to a 2014 study published in Oxford Journals.

Your squash partner cancelled on you? – Try an interactiveSQUASH game or training program which can be played solo for a fantastic squash-based workout.

3. It’s good for your mental well-being

Many modern fitness trends are centred around burning calories, little more. Squash is the thinking man or woman’s game, and that has a host of advantages. Smart strategy often trumps brute force. It also demands a laser-like focus leading to improved concentration in other aspects of life.

4. It targets the major muscles

Squash is a full body workout. Obviously players’ arms get a workout as they whip the ball around the court but this compound movement also strengthens wrists and back muscles. It also requires short sprints which need fast-twitch muscles to be firing at all times.

5. It is playable all year round

Some countries have very harsh winters or summers. This can make it difficult for some to get regular exercise outdoors. An indoor, court-based sport making is perfect for those long winter months or stifling summer seasons.

There you have it: 5 great reasons to take up a racket for the first time. Your body will thank you.

Source: Mirror.co.uk

Physical gaming has the potential to combat modern society’s lack of physical activity 

Maintain a healthy lifestyle and making exercise part of our daily routine isn’t the easiest task in our increasingly digital world. Exergaming has emerged as a great gateway to achieve more physical activity and bring the benefits of technology-enabled sports to younger generations.

According to the World Health Organisation children and adolescents around the world are not active enough. Products that successfully capture the interest of youngsters for sports and exercise such as exergaming devices can be a tool to combat this worrisome lack of physical activity.

The holy grail of hacking our actions – gamification

Gamification, which targets our play instinct and encourages us to do something about it, is a great incentive for us humans to get active.

So is sportification. That means getting someone excited in a playful way to try a new sport or a new movement pattern, working with a low inhibition threshold and with games that let you progress quickly: To sweat, have fun, and stay on the ball for the long haul. After all, it’s only through a sustained commitment to exercise that the positive effects of sport on our lives can be activated.

Five benefits of combining physical activity and digital gameplay

Motivation and Performance:

Exergaming boosts training motivation and performance as players are focused on the gameplay while performing sports or fitness workouts.

Train body and brain at the same time:

It trains physical and cognitive skills at the same time. This multidimensional stimulation of body and brain is especially valuable for kids’ development.

Social Interaction:

Gamification allows for social interaction as multiple players can participate at one time and compete on worldwide leaderboards.

Boost overall well-being:

Exergaming is an essential component of an active and healthy lifestyle. Considering that human life is based on an inseparable physical-cognitive interplay, combined physical-cognitive training through exergames is a promising approach to boost mental and physical health as well as overall well-being.

The Fun Factor:

Exergaming enhances the enjoyment of exercise by infusing workouts with the joy of play.

Our interactiveSQUASH smart court system embraces gamified training modules powered by smart sensor technology to engage the next generation of players.

Like all consumer products, squash is no longer a discrete activity, it’s an experience — consisting of fun and engaging moments on the court. Particularly among younger and more tech-savvy audiences, technology is a driving force that transforms squash practices into fully interactive events.

Squash training 2.0 on interactiveSQUASH courts.

interactiveSquash will have you training at your limit with a smile on your face. Our ever increasing range of training modules will make planning your sessions effortless. Focus on precision by training specific skills while you rev up your engine. Take a look at the exciting ways to up your game with interactiveSquash.

1. AreaTraining

AreaTraining is the customisable training tool that coaches have been looking for. Coaches can now set specific interactive targets in order to improve a variety of shots. It visually shows the impact of every hit, motivating each player to improve precision.

For solo sessions, AreaTraining can also be played with one player only, making the rather dull training routine much more fun and valuable. Two different layouts for beginners and pro players are available are available.

interactiveSquash’s training modules will open up a new dimension to coaching.

2. AreaFocus

AreaFocus is programmed to have you practicing your shooting accuracy on designated squares positioned at different heights.

Your aim will be to hit the squares as fast, accurately and often aas possible within one minute. AreaFocus will have you honing your accuracy while encouraging you to speed up the rate of your returns with real-time feedback. Losing a ball in your rally will mess up your statistics, so concentration is a must.

The summary screen will show your accuracy ratio, proximity from the wall, and the time taken to make a return for each shot after every one minute interval. Gauge your improvement round by round or use the app to view your scores after the training session.

AreaFocus can be played solo or you can up the challenge with a second player on the opposite side of the wall. AreaFocus has different layouts available.

Choose your strategy for AreaFocus: Race to beat your best times or make the best of every swing.

3. AreaChase

AreaChase will integrate fun and competition into your training session along with the speed and precision seen in the previous two Area games.

AreaChase is match with an opponent who has their own colour coded areas to target. Each player has to hit the highlighted area of his color, this then moves to different locations across the wall after each hit.

Dodge and swivel around your opponent as you both take aim at your targets. This training module can be quite intense, imagine it like a normal squash match flus an extra task. Losing a ball will result in a voice granting your opponent to serve again.

4. Long-Line

Test your shot speed and accuracy with Long-Line. Keep hitting the ball in an area of the wall that gets progressively narrower with every hit. Switching sides will give a new dimension to training your forehand and backhand drives.

As with most of the training modules, the player will receive immediate feedback after every hit.

Long-line is a solo training and sets a challenge for even the most seasoned squash player. Set your high score then check the app to compare with other players around the globe.

Test your nerve and set your score on Long-Line.

5. Butterfly

This one is for the pros! Butterfly will train your volley technique (or figure-8) to have you sharpen your winning shot. The volley technique is an essential drill that focuses on opening the face of the racket.

The aim in Butterfly is to alternate hitting designated areas on either side of the front wall to train you to generate power and precision.

Your score and the average time of each ball hit will be displayed to give you direct feedback about your speed and accuracy. Gauge your high score against a friend or any player in the world using the interactiveSQUASH App.

Butterfly will have you mastering the delicate flick of your wrist and the powerful return drive needed to make the winning shot.

Who can use interactiveSQUASH Training Modules?

The training modules have been designed to develop the precision, fitness and agility of athletes at any level whether you are a beginner, a weekend warrior or a professional athlete.

Coaches will get the chance to analyse their players performance on the best feedback system available on the market.

Players and coaches alike will love how the interactiveSquash App streamlines their communication during personalised feedback sessions. Training alone will be more fun and and focused on results.

If you are an intermediate player looking to add these training modules to your workout then try our example of an intense (yet fun) workout with interactiveSquash.

New to squash?

This is the perfect way for you to gain an appreciation of the sport while having fun and getting a great workout!

Want to play?

Give us a shout if you’re interested in finding a court near you or if you’re interested in installing the system on your court.

Immersive Gameplay: Making squash more appealing to kids and Gen Zers

Taking player development to the next level: Instant feedback on player performance

“Furthermore we want to use the great technical software to enhance our player development. The software applications that gives player feedback on shot accuracy, speed, movements and more will help our coaches and players to enhance their levels to new standards. It can be a great tool for us to take on the great international competition on elite level“, says Tord Bakke Arvesen.

InteractiveSQUASH enables players to track and analyze their real-time performance in addition to accessing footage through the interactiveSQUASH App. Our latest development the video tracking and analysis tool “Replay Coach” also enables players to record and watch their training sessions.

Tord Bakke Arvesen also sees a huge potential for sustainable revenue models: “We are also learning more about the great business opportunity that FunWithBalls gives to our squash centers, and hope that this will give them an opportunity to create another source of income in an otherwise difficult financial time.“

Our international interactiveSQUASH network

interactiveSQUASH collaborates with national and international sports federations to revolutionize the world of squash. The Norwegian Squash Federation is the latest member to our network consisting of Squash Bundesliga, PSA Worldtour and England Squash.

Watch yourself getting better with every training session.

Struggling to improve your backhand performance or drop shots. You can feel there’s something wrong with your rhythm of movement and swing but you don’t know what. 

What if you could analyze your moves on the court in realtime? Take your squash skills to the next level. We got you covered: Say hello to your “Replay Coach” 

This new training application enables squash players to record and watch their training sessions in real-time on the court from four camera views. 

How does it work?

The Replay Coach is simple and intuitive to work with.

Replay settings

• Replay in slow motion
• Use the set bar to jump to a specific time

We are always looking for feedback and ideas to make interactiveSQUASH better.

Use our live chat to get in touch with us.

Have fun!

Zushan Hashmi: A little bit about yourself outside of the SportsTech space? Perhaps, sports and technology?

Markos Kern: I started my first company in events and marketing at the age of 20.

Since then I’ve been known to do a lot of crazy projects, always circling around visual media, tech and channelling people’s attention to certain topics, which also led me to open a surf school in North Korea and do art installations in Antarctica.

I always loved to play with tech and use it to amaze people.

Tell me a little bit about Multiball?

Multiball is our latest product, bringing mixed reality sports tech into schools, smaller clubs, or even in your home.

The system works with sensors tracking every ball and the players’ motion to create an immersive playing experience that will make you engage in all sorts of physical activity for hours.

And how about interactiveSQUASH? The idea and technology?

interactiveSQUASH is where the idea was born and also part of our focus on the first sport we wanted to upgrade to the 21st century.

Given that squash is not one of the most attractive sports for youngsters today, we wanted to make it a much better experience.

Developing the tech was tricky, especially due to the extreme velocity of the ball and the players and the precision we wanted to achieve.

Where did the idea of MultiBall come from? and in particular, interactiveSQUASH?

Being hyperactive and easily bored myself, the idea to mix the words of sports with gaming was actually pretty obvious to me.

The trick was then to create a working and scalable product with my team which is easy to use for a variety of audiences.

What have been some of the personal challenges of growing interactiveSQUASH?

Definitely my impatience. I’m used to be very effective and make things move fast.

Developing such a complex system and also looking at a very conservative sport, many things take their time. It’s a classic “Startup meets old industry” case.

We were able to speed up many things and work with great partners like the Professional Squash Association, but also had to learn that sometimes a little patience is needed.

Squash is not the first sport that comes to mind when you hear of Sportstech innovation.

What was it about squash that made the sport a great option for this technology?

First, it’s an immensely undervalued sport when it comes to athleticism, speed and the level which it is played on.

There is a longstanding debate that squash is now an ‘oldies’ game, however, interactiveSQUASH has shown that kids and young people can also enjoy the game. Can you tell me a little bit about that?

When you look at the numbers it definitely is, but we’re on a very good route to change that. Squash had its high in the ’80s and ’90s and neglected focusing on the next generations since.

This is also the reason that the audiences on the pro tour reassemble the same demographic as in most centers around the world. Men over 45. There are some exceptions like the US where squash is still strong as a college sport, but there is a massive need to get kids into the courts to show them that this sport can be pretty awesome.

How do you bring the ‘fun’ to squash? Making it more accessible for children.

Everybody loves computer games and they present an easy way to lead kids and beginners over the first, sometimes very annoying, few hours to learn the sport.

Even if it’s just learning how to throw the ball or some hand-eye coordination stuff, once you have to hit monsters on the front wall, your mind switches into game mode.

It is then when you completely ignore the tough parts of the sport and start learning, later on, it even tricks you into going far beyond your fitness to beat that desired global high score.

What are the types of virtual games on offer with interactiveSQUASH?

We start with very simple games that include colourful, big targets and then slowly lead up to very sophisticated training modules for professional athletes. Some of the games are also used for other sports or even training children with disabilities or going through rehabilitation.

And what are the difficulty levels of the various games on offer with interactiveSQUASH?

They start by throwing a ball at a very large target from 2-3 meters away, something even three-year-old kids can have fun with for hours.

Once you pick up a racket, timing and strategy are added to make the games more complex and also establish some competition.

The upper end is very complex games like Memory where you have to find pairs of animals while playing squash against your partner and competing with their strategy to sabotage each other for points.

This then becomes a crazy game of chess added to an already very complex sport, which might be slightly overclocking to some people in the beginning.

But once you look at a nine-year-old beating a squash pro in that game, you’ll understand that this is only the beginning.

What is the technology able to track in terms of the performance of the players?

To track the players, we developed our own motion tracking system which takes their position into consideration in our games.

It is great to track statistics but provides even greater value when it comes to using this data in real-time to make games harder or easier.

What are the numbers on the increased use of squash courts after they install interactiveSQUASH technology?

Our average of played hours of upgraded courts at this point is 213 hours per month.

This means there are some courts like in New York that clock in over 300 hours per month, but also some exclusive or private ones that are used less.

Generally, we’ve seen a massive increase and the nice thing is that 60-70% of players in commercial centres are people that never played the sport before interactiveSQUASH and tend to be below 25 years.

Together with the good financial feasibility, this creates a very nice picture for growing the sport by enabling the operators to grow revenues and their players base.

Recently, you’ve signed a deal to work with the PSA, can you share any details about that?

We started working with the PSA a while ago already to introduce detailed statistics and tracking at matches and had a very good relationship in developing attractive elements for events and the matches.

Our goals are very much the same in this respect and the PSA has proven to be one of the main players in the sport to innovate and make the sport more attractive.

What I can say for now is that we are working on some next steps to integrate tech into the sport and improve the event and viewer experience, but the rest is still in the making.

How about with Squash Bundesliga and England Squash?

In the beginning, we were very stunned to see that the [squash[ federations were not very welcoming (or even responsive) to what we were bringing to the sport, even after seeing that we provide a steady influx of new players.

After almost three years on the scene and our centres performing very steadily, we are now seeing more interest, to make use of this to help centres improve and grow participation.

Working with these institutions is very important for us and also provides us with more insights to deeply integrate into the sport.

And also to sometimes battle the scepticism of the older generation of club owners and operators which still don’t trust this scary “computer game squash”.

How many countries now have a court with interactiveSQUASH installed?

We are now in 14 countries with some more European and Asian countries in the pipeline.

What do you envision for the future of interactiveSQUASH?

Our lives will only continue to be more digital and our attention span will demand more and more entertaining activities to be considered as attractive.

Squash is an amazing sport, but even an amazing sport will have to compete with all sorts of other distractions in the future.

Also, we as a society will have to ensure we keep these sports alive and attract future generations to physical activity to stay healthy.

And this is exactly our mission by merging them with gamification to keep people hooked to what’s fun and healthy at the same time.

After all, what applies to our bodies, applies to whole sports as well.

Things that don’t move – normally die.

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Noor Shafiq assisted in the curation of this article. You can follow him here on LinkedIn

Author

 Sportageous Editorial Team