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Volume 13, Issue 2 (February 2026), Pages: 81-88
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Original Research Paper
Artificial intelligence in sports: Enhancing athlete performance and injury prevention
Author(s):
Nashwan A. Nashwan 1, Monther Tarawneh 2, Faisal Y. Alzyoud 3, *
Affiliation(s):
1Department of Service Courses, Faculty of Arts, Isra University, Amman, Jordan 2Department of IT, College of Information Technology and Communications, Tafila Technical University, Tafila, Jordan 3Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Information Technology, Isra University, Amman, Jordan
Full text
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* Corresponding Author.
Corresponding author's ORCID profile: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3389-2431
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2026.02.009
Abstract
The rapid development of modern technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), has significantly influenced the sports industry by improving athlete performance and reducing injury risks. AI is now widely applied in areas such as performance evaluation, referee decision-making, fan engagement, and injury diagnosis. These advancements have enabled the creation of predictive models for player performance, injury prevention, and match analysis, as well as new algorithms for talent identification and performance assessment. Although AI offers substantial benefits, relying solely on data also carries risks, making informed judgment and proper training essential for coaches and athletes. This study proposes and evaluates a hybrid model that integrates deep learning methods (LSTM, DNN) with machine learning techniques (SVM, RF) to predict the probability of sports injuries. Using a manually collected real-world dataset from sports websites, the model achieved an accuracy of 81%. The findings provide valuable insights for injury prevention strategies and support more effective decision-making in the sports industry.
© 2026 The Authors. Published by IASE.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Keywords
Artificial intelligence, Sports performance, Injury prediction, Machine learning, Deep learning
Article history
Received 23 July 2025, Received in revised form 26 November 2025, Accepted 3 February 2026
Acknowledgment
All thanks to those who contributed to facilitating the research task, the researchers who collected data from various sources, including team sports websites and player information. They also worked on developing an artificial intelligence model and conducting experiments. We also thank all colleagues for their guidance and comments during the research project.
Compliance with ethical standards
Conflict of interest: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Citation:
Nashwan NA, Tarawneh M, and Alzyoud FY (2026). Artificial intelligence in sports: Enhancing athlete performance and injury prevention. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 13(2): 81-88
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Figures
Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Fig. 4
Tables
Table 1 Table 2 Table 3
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