In sport, we often wait for the moment when it’s obvious.

Obvious pain.
Obvious imbalance.
Obvious injury.

And by then, it’s already too late.

The irony is that many signs come earlier — when they’re still manageable, still subtle, still surrounded by “maybe.”

Maybe just a bad night’s sleep.
Maybe just tired from travel.
Maybe just not feeling it today.

But when I started Maya Labs, it was because I’d seen too many “maybes” turn into months on the sideline. And too many talented people quietly leave sport before they wanted to — not because they weren’t good enough, but because their bodies couldn’t keep up with the demands anymore.

And no one saw it coming.
Except… the data did.

The patterns were there

Before Maya, I worked in digital health. We looked at early signals in chronic illness: the tiny trends that show up in bloodwork, sleep, mood, before a diagnosis is even on the table.

In sport, it’s not so different.

The body tells the truth.
It just doesn’t always tell it loudly.

And in elite performance, there’s pressure to push through. Most athletes don’t raise their hand unless something’s really wrong. So you have to listen another way.

That’s what early detection is to me:
Listening differently.

Not an alert. A window.

The point isn’t to sound alarms.
It’s to create options.

When you spot a shift early, there’s still time to adapt — training load, recovery rhythm, even mindset.

But timing is everything. You have to catch it before compensation kicks in. Before the athlete changes how they move to protect what’s already fraying.

Early detection gives people more space.
To pause. To adjust. To stay in the game.

We don’t need more data. We need to see it better.

Most performance teams already have the numbers — from GPS units, wearables, force plates, wellness check-ins.

What’s missing isn’t information.
It’s interpretation.

And more importantly: trust. Between athlete and coach. Between what the data says and what the body feels.

When those two things line up, you can act early with confidence.
Not react late with regret.

Let’s make early normal

We talk a lot about recovery.
We plan for return to play.
We build rehab timelines.

But what if the real opportunity is before all that?

Not just in reacting to injury.
But in shifting before injury is even part of the conversation.

That’s the future I want to build — where early isn’t exceptional.
It’s just part of how we train.

— Elin