OSP Niedersachsen: From Excel to a Relational Database in Elite Sport

From Excel to a Relational Database: New Infrastructure for an Olympic Training Centre

In elite sport, small differences often decide outcomes – and reliable data is the foundation. At the Olympic training centre (OSP) Niedersachsen, this data has grown over the years, frequently in Excel files. Since 2025, the OSP Niedersachsen has been working closely with Datico® to develop a future-proof, relational data infrastructure from this Excel-shaped landscape – without losing the people who work with the data every day.

The OSP Niedersachsen at a Glance

Founded in 1986 and based in Hanover, the Olympic training centre Niedersachsen creates optimal conditions for the development of elite and junior elite athletes. It supports hundreds of national squad and junior squad athletes and combines services from sport science, sport psychology, nutritional and career counselling, sports medicine and sports physiotherapy. Sport science support in particular – from biomechanics through performance physiology to athletic training – continuously generates measurement data that must be available in a structured and comparable form.

The Challenge

The sport science work of an Olympic training centre has grown over years – and with it a multitude of Excel files. Legacy data was kept mostly in Excel, and data in the field is still frequently captured directly in Excel. That is flexible and familiar, but it has its limits: data is hard to compare, analyses across athletes, sports and time periods are laborious, and the advantages of a real database remain unused. The central task was therefore not just a technical migration, but a measured transition: to import the existing Excel data without loss while bringing along the scientific staff, coaches and support personnel who did not want to lose their familiar Excel way of working.

The Solution with Datico®

In the first project phase, the Datico® LIFE HUB was specifically adapted to the requirements of a German Olympic training centre. The central question was how existing and new Excel data could get into a database as easily as possible. For this, Datico® created a flexible option with the Excel import schemas to import legacy data and data still captured in the field in a structured way.

Equally important was manual data capture in the Datico® LIFE HUB based on tests and test batteries. Much was adapted here so that data entry stays as close as possible to the familiar Excel functionality. In addition, the individual calculation of parameters within the Datico® LIFE HUB was enabled – captured values directly become the key figures relevant to sport science.

So that the familiar way of working is preserved in both directions, a flexible option for Excel export was also created: via Excel export schemas, a free export to Excel is possible at any time. This makes it possible to bring Excel-oriented staff on board and gradually move them into the world of a relational database. The long-term goal of the project is clearly defined: to replace Excel entirely and to handle both data capture and data analysis exclusively in the Datico® LIFE HUB. How this path looks in practice is also explored in the article “From Excel to a Relational Database”.

This makes the Datico® Data Value Chain visible in the project:

• Data in Connection – legacy data and Excel data captured in the field are brought together via Excel import schemas and manual test batteries.
• Data in Context – in a relational database with individual parameter calculation, raw values become comparable, analysable key figures.
• Data in Communication – via Excel export schemas the data is available at any time, flexibly and in the familiar format.
• Data in Consistency – in its own tenant with individual settings, the OSP Niedersachsen retains full control over its data.

Results and Benefits

With the capabilities created and the individual settings in its own database, the OSP Niedersachsen has succeeded in building an entirely new data infrastructure – and with it a new way of working for an Olympic training centre. The previously strongly Excel-shaped infrastructure was integrated in this first project phase: the Excel route remains usable as a transitional solution while a structured database with all the analysis capabilities of the Datico® LIFE HUB is being built. A long-term goal is to reduce working with Excel to the bare minimum. In particular, data capture and entry into the Datico® LIFE HUB should take place as automatically as possible.

After completing these steps, the OSP Niedersachsen decided on a long-term cooperation: the decision was taken under the leadership of Dr. Boris Ulrich and head of sport science Dr. Sebastian Buitrago; the contract sets the cooperation until December 2028. For the future, further steps are planned to consistently continue the chosen path in Health & Performance Intelligence and to open up new possibilities for athletes and federations.

Voice of the Customer

“Our sport science team worked with Excel for years. With the Datico® LIFE HUB, we bring this enormous volume of data and files together in a real database for the first time – while the familiar Excel workflows are initially preserved in both directions. Over the course of the LIFE HUB’s further development, however, the goal is to implement processes that require the use of Excel as little as possible. For our centre and other Olympic training centres, that would be an entirely new basis for our work.”

— Dr. Sebastian Buitrago, Head of Sport Science

Conclusion

The OSP Niedersachsen shows how the transition from grown Excel structures to a relational database can succeed – not as a rupture, but as a gradual path that brings people along. Datico® provides the foundation: migrate Excel data without loss, structure it in a real database and move the team step by step into a fully database-driven way of working – with the clear goal of replacing Excel entirely in the long term. Many individual files thus become a future-proof, shared data basis for elite sport: Better Data. Better Decisions. Better Outcomes.