TOKYO -- During Japan's breakout performance in the recent Rugby World Cup, the players' muscle, grit and tactical savvy were on display for all to see. Less visible, but just as important, was the role a unique cloud-based information system played in the team's success.

The One Tap Rugby system accumulates a wide range of data -- both subjective and objective -- on players' physical conditions. (Image courtesy of Euphoria)

Eddie Jones, the head coach at the time, is known for demanding the most from his players, physically and mentally, and his training sessions reflected that. The extra lengths he and his staff went to fueled Japan's astonishing World Cup victory over perennial powerhouse South Africa, a match widely considered the biggest upset in rugby history.

One of those "extra lengths" came in the form of a partnership between the national team and a little-known Tokyo information technology startup.

Blazing a trail

Euphoria was established in 2008 by Hiroshi Hashiguchi and Makoto Miyata. Hashiguchi had worked at Accenture and other consulting companies before launching the venture, while Miyata had honed his expertise in marketing at Bridgestone and other companies. The partners believed that by combining their individual strengths with IT muscle, they could help companies solve various challenges.

It turns out their services translated to the world of sports, too. Jones wanted access to highly detailed data on his players so he could more efficiently manage his training regime. The national team approached Euphoria, and the company developed a cloud computing system for the team, which began using it in early 2013 during training camps and on other occasions. For roughly the next two years, the coaches, trainers, players and others involved with the team used the system.

To meet the many demands of the squad, the system went through hundreds of iterations. Jones and his staff needed to accurately grasp the condition of each player and the overall team in order to make the precise course corrections he felt were needed to guide the organization toward his lofty goals. This required tremendous amounts of data and a way to manage and share that information effectively. By making that possible, Euphoria's cloud computing system served as the backbone of the team's training program.

It was a happy coincidence that brought "Eddie Japan" and Euphoria together in the summer of 2012.

"The national team was looking for a system developer. One of the team's high-ranking officials sought the advice of a friend, who was also a friend with the No. 2 person at Euphoria," Hashiguchi said.

Miyata said the company "looked around the world and couldn't find any IT system that was developed specifically for use in rugby training. So we took on the challenge of creating a Japanese way of rugby training from scratch." The company did so, he said, because "we realized it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

The first step was solidifying the basic concept, which was done through repeated exchanges of ideas with the coaching staff. Through this process, it became clear that the system needed to house a diverse array of data on players' physical conditions from both subjective and objective perspectives.

The system also needed to record detailed information about various strength-training programs and the progress each player was making. This would enable coaches to adjust the training intensity to the specific needs of each athlete, helping them more effectively apply strength and conditioning training methods used by the world's rugby superpowers.

Euphoria named the system "One Tap Rugby," to convey the simplicity of smartphone apps that can be controlled with a finger.

Once the system was ready, the players were required to input subjective data on their physical conditions about once a day. This was typically done using a smartphone or tablet upon waking up. They would rate their levels of fatigue, quality of sleep, mental stress and muscle pain. Because the players' days were packed from morning to night, the process was designed to take only about 30 seconds; all the players needed to do was slide bars along an intensity scale shown on the display.

Along the way, objective data on each athlete's physical condition was also entered into the system, including weight, body temperature, heart rate and oxygen saturation level. It was not long before the cloud was brimming with huge amounts of information on the team.

Before the system was introduced, coaches and trainers largely relied on experience and hunches to assess the conditions of the athletes. After One Tap Rugby was introduced, tablets became their constant companion. Suddenly, the coaches had access to vast pools of data that made it possible to more accurately gauge their players and the team as a whole, and see trends once hidden from sight.

Measuring feelings

One unique aspect of the One Tap Rugby system is the importance it places on subjective data. There are many Internet-based services that allow people to record heath and fitness statistics, such as the number of steps walked in a day. And while the details of their services may vary, they all analyze objective data fed by sensors with the aim of improving users' health.

A lot of effort went into creating a simple user interface that lets players input all the necessary data in about 30 seconds. (Image courtesy of Euphoria)

But "in the world of professional sports, improving the quality of subjective data is more important for training sessions and matches than focusing on objective data," Miyata said. This is because subjective data sheds light on a player's mental condition, which is crucial for performing well at the highest level.

The One Tap Rugby system can also track pain and other data for individual parts of the body, such as the lower back, hips, shoulders and neck. Additionally, it can be programmed so that an email will automatically be sent to a coach if certain metrics -- such as pain, fatigue or weight -- for an athlete move above or below a predetermined level. By identifying potential problems early, coaches can help avert injuries or other problems by, for example, letting an athlete skip training or a game.

Subjective data is by nature inconsistent; some players feel pain more acutely than others, while some may intentionally rate their mental stress levels lower ahead of a match to convince themselves they are ready to play.

But even these fluctuations can be addressed by recoding data over a long period, as patterns unique to individual players and the team will emerge over time.