For most runners, the sound of the starting gun marks the beginning of a race. But for D/deaf and hard-of-hearing athletes, that crucial auditory cue may be inaccessible. This puts them at a disadvantage from the very first second.
Twelve-year-old deaf runner Hannah Wong explains, “When I did the crouch start, it was difficult for me to see the ‘GO’ signal, because I had to look up to see [it]. It is sometimes delayed too. So I worried if I could start at the same time as the other participants.”
Apart from the ‘GO’ signal, the current practice for D/deaf and hard-of-hearing athletes in schools has been to rely on a physical tap on the shoulder–known as the buddy tap system–to know when to start running. It’s a workaround solution that inherently creates a delay, taking away precious milliseconds from the runner.
With support from Sport Singapore’s Enabling Sports Fund (ESF), a team from Republic Polytechnic is working to change that through Project StartBright — a visual starting system designed to give athletes an equitable start on the track.
Image caption: Project StartBright - a visual starting device that lights up to signal the start of the race.
The Enabling Sports Fund is part of Sport Singapore’s broader efforts under the Disability Sports Master Plan to reduce barriers to sport participation for persons with disabilities, by supporting community-led solutions that make sport more accessible.
Image caption: Choo Han Kiat, lead for Project StartBright
Inspiration for the project came when engineering lecturer at Republic Polytechnic Choo Han Kiat and his team were approached by Mayflower Primary School: Singapore’s pioneer designated mainstream primary school supporting signing students with hearing loss. The school drew attention to an obstacle faced by some of their hearing-impaired track athletes competing in the National School Games–unable to hear the starter's gun, they were at a clear disadvantage.
Han Kiat and his team saw the barrier as an opportunity, marking the beginning of Project StartBright. “As engineers and educators, we have the opportunity to bridge some of these gaps through thoughtful design and innovation,” he says.
Support from the Enabling Sports Fund enabled the team to take the idea beyond the prototype stage, which allowed D/deaf and hard-of-hearing athletes gather for initial trial sessions with the device. Han Kiat’s team was then able to refine the system and ensure that the solution remained focused on serving the needs of athletes with disabilities.
The trial session brought together students and educators from Mayflower Primary School, who proposed using synchronised visual cues, like flashing lights, to signal the start; landing the name StartBright.
Hannah was among one of the young runners who tested the newly designed starting device. “It’s more comfortable with Project StartBright and I don’t need to worry as much. I can now start at the same time like other participants.”
Beyond Mayflower Primary, the team also tested the device with Republic Polytechnic’s Track & Field athletes. Involving both hearing and hard-of-hearing runners provided the reaction-time data needed to guarantee a precise, fair start.
Republic Polytechnic student Adam bin Norman, who participated in the trials alongside his teammates, observed that the initiative promotes a fairer and more inclusive environment in the sport.
IImage caption: Republic Polytechnic students from the track team testing out their reaction times with the Project StartBright.
For Han Kiat and his team, the ambition goes beyond creating a starting device specifically for adaptive athletics. Their goal is a system that can be used by all athletes, so that everyone gets the same opportunity to start together on the starting line.
Project StartBright is one of the community-led initiatives supported through SportSG’s Enabling Sports Fund to make sport more accessible to persons with disabilities. Find out more here: https://go.gov.sg/enablingsportsfund