Georgia Tech Opens Student-Athlete Performance Center

Georgia Tech opened the Thomas A. Fanning Student-Athlete Performance Center in May of 2026 in Atlanta. Designed by SLAM, the leading-edge facility spans over 100,000 sf and serves all 17 of the Yellow Jackets’ sports programs. The institution’s first-ever sports science lab features markerless motion-capture cameras, force plates, and advanced gait-analysis technologies. A strength and conditioning venue totals more than 17,000 sf and offers 32 fully equipped racks which leverage HD monitors and velocity tracking systems to display real-time feedback to optimize performance. 

Anchored by an interactive central lobby, the dynamic hub houses areas for sports medicine that contain hydrotherapy pools, antigravity treadmills, a HUMAC NORM isokinetic device, and sophisticated rehabilitation modalities including focused shockwave therapy. A recovery zone includes infrared light beds, hydromassage chairs, dry floatation beds, and a hyperbaric chamber. The university’s partnership with Emory Healthcare will facilitate data analysis, technology-informed modeling, and specific programming to promote student athlete development and reduce injury risk. The four-story structure accommodates environments for nutrition, dining, mental health, and coaching, with the third level dedicated exclusively to Georgia Tech football. Offices are accompanied by team meeting rooms that enable instruction, collaboration, and shared strategy planning. 

Created in alignment with a LEED Gold framework, the sustainable building incorporates cross-laminated timber components, a high-performance envelope, and stormwater capture mechanisms. Paired with measures for concrete carbon reduction, the reuse of steel from work on the existing Bobby Dodd Stadium decreased project-related embodied carbon by over 25,000 kg. DPR Construction broke ground on the center in March of 2024. The engineering team comprised Walter P Moore, Newcomb & Boyd, and Kimley-Horn.