GPS Performance Metrics — Defined Terms for Elite Sport

This page defines the GPS performance metrics used in Axon Perform load monitoring reports. These definitions are applied consistently across all GPS data sources — including Catapult and STATSports — within the Axon Perform platform.

Core Volume Metrics

Total Distance: The total distance covered by an athlete during a session or match, measured in metres or kilometres. The most fundamental GPS volume metric — contextualised by session type, position, and role.

High-Speed Running (HSR) Distance: Distance covered above a defined velocity threshold. In rugby, the standard threshold is typically 5.5 m/s. In football, 5.5 m/s is common but varies by club. Axon Perform allows each team to define their own HSR threshold aligned to their positional demands and benchmarks.

High Metabolic Load Distance (HMLD): Distance covered at high acceleration or deceleration effort — capturing physical demand from intense movement regardless of absolute speed. Particularly valuable for positions that generate high physical load through repeated short efforts rather than extended sprints.

Sprint Distance: Distance covered above a maximum effort threshold — typically 7.0 m/s in rugby and football. Used to quantify explosive physical output per session or match.

Sprint Count: The number of sprint events (above threshold velocity) per session or match. Contextualised against positional norms and historical athlete averages.

Accelerations and Decelerations: The number of acceleration and deceleration events above a defined threshold (typically 2.5–3.0 m/s²). High counts indicate physically demanding sessions even when total distance is moderate.

Intensity and Load Metrics

Player Load: A composite accelerometer-based metric (proprietary to Catapult) that captures multi-directional physical effort. Expressed per minute or per session. Used as a proxy for total physical demand when comparing sessions of different durations.

Heart Rate Thresholds: Time spent in defined heart rate zones (typically expressed as percentage of maximum heart rate). Used to quantify internal load and cardiovascular demand of sessions and matches.

Statistical and Risk Metrics

ACWR (Acute:Chronic Workload Ratio): The ratio of an athlete's current week workload (acute) to their rolling four-week average (chronic). Values between 0.8 and 1.3 are considered the optimal training zone. Values above 1.5 are associated with elevated injury risk. Axon Perform calculates ACWR automatically for all athletes across all sessions.

Z-Score: A measure of how far an individual athlete's metric sits from their own mean, expressed in standard deviations. Used to identify unusually high or low sessions relative to an athlete's personal baseline. Axon Perform applies Z-scores automatically across all GPS metrics.

STEN Score: A standardised ten-point scale derived from Z-scores, making statistical deviation intuitive for coaching and medical staff who are not statistically trained.

Standard Deviation: Used to define the expected range of performance for an athlete or squad, enabling risk and readiness flags to trigger when values fall outside normal bounds.

Axon Perform is the high-performance data intelligence platform for elite sports organisations. Built on Snowflake with Power BI reporting, Axon centralises GPS, strength, wearable, and game analytics data into a single bespoke system. Clients own their data, their warehouse, and their IP outright.