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The Covid-19 crisis has had a profound impact on the world of sport. When fitness centers closed their doors and travel was restricted, many French people had to rethink their sports practices, often turning to digital solutions.
Images: Fit Immersion
Downloads of sports applications have exploded, and one in two people now use a connected device when training. Virtual reality has also experienced a significant boom, as evidenced by the success of Fit Immersion‘s connected headsets.
These devices offer athletes an immersive experience: they allow them to teleport to postcard-perfect settings and cycle on roads in France, Russia, Ireland, and even on the Moon. Already adopted by several gyms, Fit Immersion headsets are ideal gifts for exercise bike and elliptical trainer enthusiasts.
Fit Immersion: virtual reality headsets optimized for sport
Fit Immersion is a start-up based in Montpellier that has been offering virtual reality headsets dedicated to sport since 2017. It stands out from its competitors in two ways. First, it offers an interactive experience on courses filmed in 360°. Second, its virtual reality headsets are specially designed for sports training, with an open design allowing air to circulate, cleanable fasteners, and weight evenly distributed between the front and back.
Fit Immersion headsets are distributed online at fitimmersion.com as well as by FitnessBoutique, lavantgardiste.com and soon on Decathlon Marketplace.
20 breathtaking courses
To date, the start-up offers 18 360° courses and 2 3D courses. They allow users to escape to the most beautiful roads of Camargue, speed over the Millau Viaduct, cycle in Moscow’s Red Square, travel through Ireland, and even train on the Moon.
Interactive coaching application
Fit Immersion offers immersive and interactive training, with personalized sessions, virtual coaching, and real-time performance display. They are used with an exercise bike, an indoor trainer, or an elliptical trainer. A speed sensor compatible with all classic bikes allows for real-time monitoring.
On connected bikes or indoor trainers, the realism goes even further by also allowing synchronization of difficulty with real-time courses.
A great success story
Initially, Fit Immersion headsets appealed to gyms looking to offer an immersive experience to their clients.
The new version of the device also allows gyms to organize competitions between users: the experience and ranking are displayed on a screen, a tablet, or directly on Matrix brand bike consoles. An installation with connected Spirit Johnny G spinning bikes will be open to the public at Spa Lyon Métropole starting in early 2022.
New markets are also beginning to show interest in the Fit Immersion solution. Its headsets have been adopted by the event agency Moov’ Events for sports events. The solution also meets the expectations of adapted sports: it has been installed in the Apa’Mouv rehabilitation center for people with disabilities in Montpellier.
The space sector has also opted for Fit Immersion devices, to offer an experience called “Immersive Exercise” in the International Space Station. A version operating in zero gravity was developed with CNES (Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales) for this occasion. This is currently being used by the iconic Thomas Pesquet.
The Fit Immersion range
Launched on the home sports market in 2020, Fit Immersion products are also enjoying great success with individuals, with a peak in sales at Christmas. Following numerous requests, the start-up launched a new version of its kits, as well as an application compatible with Oculus Quest virtual reality headsets.
This complete kit transforms any exercise bike or elliptical into an immersive machine. The standalone headset features a 2K screen and a large-capacity battery offering over two hours of autonomy. Includes a Bluetooth speed sensor for use with non-connected bikes.
Price: €599
The virtual reality kit – Mobile edition 2
This kit consists of a speed sensor, a micro SD card or USB stick containing the courses, and a virtual reality headset into which a smartphone is placed. It is compatible with Android, and will be compatible with iPhone in October 2021.
Price: €199
This kit consists of a speed sensor and 10 courses, five on a USB stick and five to download. It is compatible with Oculus Quest, Quest-2, and Go models. The application is currently being validated on Oculus App Lab.
Price: €119
It is also possible to use the application without a speed sensor. In this case, it analyzes head movements to deduce pedaling cadence.
About Fit Immersion
Fit Immersion was created in 2017 by Dimitri Prikhodko. An artificial intelligence specialist, he worked on simulating human behavior and on the calculation component of blood analysis automatons. Dimitri is also a former semi-professional athlete, who ranked in the top 10 of the French junior cross-country championships and achieved the best French performance in the 30-minute track event as a cadet.
The Fit Immersion project was born in 2015, when Dimitri discovered virtual reality. “I had a hard time enduring the exercise bike training that was imposed on us at certain times, due to injuries and breaks. I told myself that by coupling virtual reality with exercise, we could have a much more motivating experience by simulating an outdoor ride,” he explains.
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