Could sports equipment of the future be too technology enhanced to be fair? (Image courtesy of zole4 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

Saw a great article called, “NIKE DEBUTS FIRST 3D PRINTED CLEATS FOR PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES” that talks about 3D printing of sports gear. There are already several sports where superior equipment can give an athlete an advantage like golf, tennis and even Olympic swimsuits. In golf it’s common for a player to play with custom clubs or a track star to run in custom shoes, but how much customization should be allowed before it’s unfair? No doubt it will be a topic in the future. We’ll go from performance enhancing drugs to performance enhancing equipment. It makes me think of that scene from Revenge of the Nerds where an nonathletic guy is able to win the javelin competition because of a custom javelin. Maybe it was just 30 years ahead of its time.