PALO ALTO, CA., March 8, 2021 — Zone7, the AI-driven human performance platform, has appointed Rich Buchanan as Performance Director, to support the company’s rapid expansion across the professional sports market.
Buchanan, a qualified Chartered Physiotherapist with an MSc in Rehabilitation, has multiple sports performance certifications, a UEFA football coaching license, among other strategic qualifications. In the new role, he will be responsible for helping clients reach full functionality as they onboard, integrate, and use Zone7’s platform.
“We’re delighted to bring Rich to Zone7, someone who’s just as dedicated to helping individuals reach their full potential as we are,” said Tal Brown, CEO and Co-Founder of Zone7. “Rich’s unique domain expertise around athletics, combined with experience in other industry verticals that Zone7 is exploring longer-term, such as healthcare, law enforcement and military, will be invaluable as we scale to accommodate demand without relinquishing on quality.”
Prior to joining Zone7, Buchanan held various positions related to athlete optimization, including Performance Director at Swansea City FC, Human Performance Consultant for DC United, Consultant Physiotherapist for the Football Association of Wales, and Performance & Medical Auditor for the Professional Game Academy Audit Company – a regulatory arm of the English Premier League. Outside of sports, Buchanan has also provided physiotherapy rehabilitation programs for the likes of Metropolitan Police and the Ministry of Defence.
“I’m very pleased to join Zone7 at a time when the company’s momentum is stronger than ever,” said Buchanan. “As someone with a fierce professional passion for ‘responsible innovation’, I believe Zone7’s AI backed approach to mitigating injury risk and unlocking new value perfectly aligns with this principle, I can’t wait to get started.”
“As more organizations engage Zone7 to learn about the platform and trial its capabilities against their own data, Rich will be a tremendous addition to our team and will have a key role in helping organizations unlock the full potential of Zone7,” said Eyal Eliakim, CTO and Co-Founder of Zone7. “We’re confident his coaching and physiotherapy knowledge, understanding of sports organizations’ KPIs, and ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams will only accelerate Zone7’s growth.”
Buchanan’s arrival is the latest example of professional sports leaders recognizing Zone7’s potential to forecast injury risk. In December, two-time FIFA World Player of the Year nominee Bex Smith joined as an investor and strategic advisor. Other notable athlete investors include Kristaps Porzingis (Dallas Mavericks), Jordi Cruyff (formerly of FC Barcelona and Netherlands), Phil Jones (Manchester United and England), and John Colquhoun (formerly of Heart of Midlothian FC and Scotland).
