Well, really things could take place from either standpoint.

The athletes could just as easily have adjusted their performance to fit an existing track.

There could also be some audio editing that takes place in some instances, this to an existing track.

And finally, the athlete could indeed go as far as paying to have some Industrial Music outfit work up a piece to suit, this last one likely being the one not used as often due to cost.

As for the fine sound, that can be done using any properly mastered CD, especially those already in production for other reasons. This is why I'm always trying to convince people around here that there should be no such thing as one mix mastered for CD, another for online streaming, another for playback thru PA at live performance, the bottom line is that a properly mastered mix should translate equally well on all playback devices. And the proof of that pudding is in the commercially available CDs.


--Mac