ASICS
Today, ASICS reveals exercise can significantly improve cognitive function and advance mental performance. From boosting short-term memory to increasing concentration levels, exercise enhances brain power and could be the solution to helping us pass exams or excel at work.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230119005693/en/
Memory sport competitor, Ben Pridmore took part in the ASICS Mind Games study (Photo: Business Wire)
In a unique experiment, ASICS invited competitive gamers from around the world, specialising in mind games such as Chess and Esports and who rely on their cognitive function, to start an exercise programme. After four months of regular exercise, their minds were significantly sharpened and they performed at an even higher competitive level.
Participants’ international gaming rankings improved by an incredible 75% proving, yet again, the close interplay between our mind and body. The mind gamers’ cognitive function was boosted on average by 10%, with problem solving abilities improving by 9%, short-term memory increasing by 12% and processing speed and alertness improving by 10%. Group confidence levels increased by 44%, concentration improved by 33% and anxiety levels plummeted by 43%. The research shows exercise can be as effective at boosting brain function as learning a second language, daily reading, playing a new musical instrument or completing a puzzle every day.i
Professor Brendon Stubbs, a renowned researcher in movement and the mind, developed and led the experiment. Each gamer followed a training programme designed by runner turned international coach, Andrew Kastor. The programme included medium impact cardio and strength training and increased the gamers exercise levels to 150 minutes a week. Professor Stubbs measured the mental improvement of the participants based on their performance in their mind games, cognitive tests and wellbeing questionnaires over the course of their four-month research period.
Commenting on the results, Professor Brendon Stubbs said: “We all know that exercise is good for our mental and physical health but the impact on cognitive functioning has been less explored. We wanted to examine the effects of exercise on people who depend on their cognitive abilities - competitive mind gamers. Our results show significant improvements in their cognitive functioning, including concentration levels and problem-solving abilities.
“Exercise stimulates cell growth in the brain and rapidly increases blood flow to the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, mechanisms that enable us to better retain memories, process information and problem solve quickly. If exercise can significantly increase the mental performance of professional mind gamers, imagine what it could do for the rest of us. From increasing focus when revising for an exam or improving alertness before a work presentation, exercise truly can enhance brain power.”
As well as showing that exercise improved the participants cognitive function and gaming capabilities, Professor Stubbs also found that the gamers’ mental wellbeing was significantly uplifted, with average State of Mind scores improving by 31%.ii The gamers’ average state of mind score at the start of the study was a below average 58 and at the end it was a high 76iii, demonstrating the significant impact exercise can also have on your mental wellbeing.
The study’s Head Coach, Andrew Kastor, who developed the gamers’ training programmes, stated: “These results are astonishing and speak to the power of exercise. Many of the gamers couldn’t jog for longer than a minute at the start of the study, so their training programmes had to be moderate. 150 minutes a week sounds a lot but when you break it down this could be 5 sets of 30 minutes. No matter your fitness levels, the mental benefits of exercise are accessible to all.”
Inspired by the experiment, a camera crew followed four competitive gamers as they took on regular exercise to improve their rankings on the international stage. The result was a new ground-breaking documentary ‘Mind Games – The Experiment’, narrated by the internationally acclaimed actor, and mental health campaigner, Stephen Fry. Now available to stream on Prime Video, the feature length film documents the journeys of four gamers – Kassa Korley, Ryoei Hirano, Ben Pridmore and Sherry Nhan – who specialise in Chess, Mahjong, Memory and Esports as they compete in professional tournaments around the world. Watch the documentary trailer here.
Gary Raucher, EVP, ASICS EMEA said: “Our founding philosophy is literally in our name, Anima Sana In Corpore Sano or a Sound Mind in a Sound Body. We have always encouraged utilising exercise for both physical and mental benefits, but this is the first time we have explored the true impact on cognitive functioning. Mind Games – The Experiment shows the power of exercise to sharpen the mind and we hope that after watching the documentary, everyone (regardless of their age, body type or fitness level) is inspired to move to help boost their brain.”
Mind Games - The Experiment is available to stream on Prime Video from 19th January 2023.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
The ASICS study ran from May – September 2022, with 77 gamers from 20 countries completing the experiment. All passed health screening questionnaires and completed consent forms before taking part.
For further information, images or to organise an interview with Professor Brendon Stubbs, Head Coach Andrew Kastor, or one of the gamers featured in the documentary, please contact Rory Cramsie at ASICSMindGames@golin.com
i Comparisons drawn from: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/09567976221092726 and https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6174231/ and https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2021.706672/full#:~:text=Bilingualism%20has%20been%20linked%20to,cognitive%20enhancement%20in%20older%20adults
ii ASICS proprietary State of Mind score is a rating out of 100 made up of 10 emotional and cognitive metrics, including: composure, resilience, positivity, contentment, relaxation, confidence, alertness, calmness, focus and energy.
iii After four months the groups state of mind score increased into the top 10% globally.
Anima Sana In Corpore Sano, meaning “A Sound Mind in a Sound Body,” is an old Latin phrase from which ASICS is derived and the fundamental platform on which the brand still stands. The company was founded in 1949 by Kihachiro Onitsuka and is now a leading designer, developer and manufacturer of running shoes, as well as various sports footwear, apparel and accessories. For more information, visit www.asics.com.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230119005693/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Ant International Partners with Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol to Expand AI Capabilities12.1.2026 02:15:00 CET | Press release
Ant International, a leading global payment, digitisation, and financial technology provider, is collaborating on the launch of Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), a new open standard for agentic commerce that works across the entire shopping journey — from discovery and buying to post-purchase support. UCP establishes a common language for agents and systems to operate together across consumer surfaces, businesses, and payment providers to enable commerce. So instead of requiring unique connections for every individual agent, UCP enables all agents to interact easily. UCP is built to work across verticals and is compatible with existing industry protocols like Agent2Agent (A2A), Agent Payments Protocol (AP2), and Model Context Protocol (MCP). “For agentic commerce to scale, it’s critical for the industry to align on a common set of standards. We are proud to have Ant International endorse the Universal Commerce Protocol as the foundation for that future,” said Ashish Gupta, VP
Torq Secures $140M Series D at $1.2B Valuation to Lead the AI SOC and Agentic AI Era11.1.2026 17:59:00 CET | Press release
Fueled by Massive Customer Adoption of AI Agents, Torq Scales the World’s First True AI SOC Platform and Accelerates Expansion into the U.S. Federal Market Torq, the established Agentic AI security operations pioneer, today announced it has closed a massive $140 million Series D funding round, propelling its valuation to $1.2 billion and total funding to $332M. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260112510774/en/ Led by Merlin Ventures—a leading cybersecurity fund renowned for its deep access to the U.S. commercial and Public Sector markets—with participation from all existing investors, including Evolution Equity Partners, Notable Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Insight Ventures Partners, and Greenfield Partners, this capital injection is a definitive investment in the future of security. Torq is driving the industry’s critical shift: the complete transformation of the Security Operations Center (SOC) through
Andersen udvider sine kompetencer med tilføjelsen af Scimitar9.1.2026 21:44:00 CET | Pressemeddelelse
Andersen Consulting har indgået en samarbejdsaftale med Scimitar, der er et firma med fokus på at accelerere innovation i biovidenskabsbranchen. Scimitar, der har hovedkvarter i USA, et førende konsulenthus inden for strategieksekvering for biovidenskabsbranchen. Virksomheden er specialiseret i design af driftsmodeller, digital transformation og organisatorisk forandring. Scimitar samarbejder med medicinal- og biotech-virksomheder om at accelerere innovation, styrke den driftsmæssige eksekvering og sikre compliance gennem hele produkters livscyklus. Deres praktiske og samarbejdsorienterede tilgang sikrer løsninger, der ikke blot er formålstjenlige, men også skalerbare. "Virksomheder inden for biovidenskabsbranchen befinder sig i en tid med hurtige videnskabelige fremskridt, stigende regulatorisk kompleksitet og et voksende behov for operationel agilitet, samtidig med at de holdes op mod de højeste standarder for patientsikkerhed og dataintegritet," udtaler Ramy Khalil, CEO i Scimitar.
Biocytogen and Acepodia Expand Collaboration Through Option-based Evaluation Framework for First-in-Class Bispecific and Dual-Payload ADCs (BsAD2C)9.1.2026 13:00:00 CET | Press release
Expanded collaboration builds on Acepodia and Biocytogen’s recent co-development efforts to evaluate selected bispecific antibody and dual-payload ADC programs Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (Biocytogen, SSE: 688796; HKEX: 02315) and Acepodia (6976:TT), today announced that the companies have entered into an option and license agreement designed to enable the structured evaluation of bispecific antibody-drug conjugate (BsADC) programs to further advance the development of dual-payload bispecific antibody-drug conjugates (BsAD2Cs). The agreement grants Acepodia an option to obtain an exclusive worldwide license from Biocytogen for two BsADC programs. Under the terms of the agreement, Biocytogen is eligible to receive an upfront option fee and, upon Acepodia’s exercise of the option, additional payments including option exercise fees, development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, as well as royalties on future product sales. The financial terms of the agreem
Blockstream Capital Partners Announces Strategic Acquisition of Derivatives Trading Team from Numeus Group, Leveraging Strategic Partnership with Komainu9.1.2026 11:08:00 CET | Press release
Blockstream Capital Partners (“BCP”) today announced that it has entered into a strategic agreement to acquire a division within Numeus Group’s digital asset trading and investment business. The transaction includes the absorption of select Bitcoin focused trading strategies with a focus on yield generation as well as a ten person derivatives trading team led by Chief Investment Officer Deepak Gulati, a specialist in volatility and derivatives markets. Deepak Gulati, appointed Co-Chief Investment Officer of Blockstream Capital Management alongside Rodrigo Rodriguez, previously served as Global Head of Proprietary Trading at JPMorgan, before founding Argentiere Capital, a multibillion-dollar volatility-focused hedge fund. With a thesis that derivatives would drive Bitcoin and digital asset market maturity, he co-founded Numeus Group in 2021 to develop institutional-grade trading, risk management and market-structure capabilities. Komainu, an existing BCP strategic investment, has played
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom