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Improving elite sports performance

Summary of the impact

This case study demonstrates how research at the University of Bath on athlete technique and performance in sprinting and hurdling events has been translated back to the end users in order to improve their performance. The primary pathway to impact is via Dr Salo's involvement in applied work with virtually all top British sprinters and hurdlers and their coaches over the last 5 years (including all those who have represented Britain in major Championships). As a consequence of his research since 1998, Dr Salo has helped specific athletes to win medals, brought new insights to coach education and practice, instigated changes to routine practices within UK Athletics and also translated his expertise to other Olympic sports.

Submitting Institution

University of Bath

Unit of Assessment

Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism

Summary Impact Type

Societal

Research Subject Area(s)

Mathematical Sciences: Applied Mathematics
Medical and Health Sciences: Human Movement and Sports Science, Public Health and Health Services

Pre-competition strategies for enhanced performance in elite athletes

Summary of the impact

Research conducted at Swansea University has helped transform the pre-competition strategies of elite sport. This research has focused mainly on the application of post-activation potentiation (PAP), manipulation of warm-up variables and morning priming for enhanced performance. This work has had significant impact on the recent successes of elite skeleton bobsleigh athletes at the 2010 Winter Olympics (e.g. ~4% improvement on their key performance indicator) and a number of other British sports during London 2012 (e.g. British Cycling who won 12 medals). The research continues to impact elite sports and is being embedded into athletes' pre-competition routines for Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016.

Submitting Institution

Swansea University

Unit of Assessment

Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism

Summary Impact Type

Societal

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Clinical Sciences, Human Movement and Sports Science, Public Health and Health Services

Iron Chelators and Hepcidin Analogues for Therapeutic Use

Summary of the impact

Use of the iron chelator drug deferiprone — first developed by researchers at King's College London (KCL) — has extended the lives of thalassaemia patients and is of great utility for those with cardiac problems as it can remove excess iron from the heart. For this reason deferiprone has more recently gained United States approval. KCL researchers have also developed methods for the synthesis and analysis of markers of iron chelation therapy that are being utilised in clinical trials by Novartis Pharmaceuticals and Vifor Pharma and by clinicians. Several neurodegenerative diseases are associated with elevated brain iron levels and the use of deferiprone is also being investigated in clinical trials by ApoPharma and hospitals in the UK and France.

Submitting Institution

King's College London

Unit of Assessment

Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy

Summary Impact Type

Technological

Research Subject Area(s)

Biological Sciences: Biochemistry and Cell Biology
Medical and Health Sciences: Cardiorespiratory Medicine and Haematology, Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Evidenced based practice to optimise the development and performance of world class and Olympic sailors

Summary of the impact

A 20 year collaborative programme of research and physiological monitoring between the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and the University of Chichester (UC) has significantly impacted upon training and competitive strategies adopted by the RYA to maintain world class sailing performance within the REF period. Research conducted in the period 1993-2004 provided the first empirical evidence base to underpin training for dingy and boardsailing. This provided the foundation to develop training guidelines for youth and elite sailors, contributing to successful sailing performances in the past five Olympic games. The guidelines are now freely accessible online for recreational sailors.

Submitting Institution

University of Chichester

Unit of Assessment

Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism

Summary Impact Type

Societal

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Human Movement and Sports Science, Public Health and Health Services
Studies In Human Society: Policy and Administration

“Cardiovascular deaths in young athletes-Preventing the tragedy”: The development and implementation of evidence-based pre-participation cardiovascular screening protocols

Summary of the impact

There are twelve young (<35 years) sudden cardiac deaths each week in the UK. These deaths in the young, fit and otherwise healthy are devastating, result in significant life-years lost and can lead to substantial media attention. The focus of this case study is based on the fact that the majority of these deaths may be preventable as it is possible to detect young athletes at risk of sudden cardiac death through pre-participation cardiovascular screening (PPS). The Cardiovascular Health Sciences Group (CHS) within the Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences (RISES) has a long history of novel empirical research in this field that has had significant and far-reaching impact by; a) determining UK-based pathology data in cases of sudden cardiac death that led to the establishment of a National Register for these cases, b) contributing to international consensus statements (e.g. European Society of Cardiology) related to PPS that have been adopted by major sporting teams and organisations (e.g. Liverpool FC), c) the production of evidence-based screening policy guidelines for PPS (e.g. Cardiac Risk in the Young [CRY], British Society of Echocardiography), and d) the establishment of PPS screening activity in Liverpool (e.g. CRY clinic; elite athletes) and internationally (e.g. ASPETAR, Qatar). Our work has made a significant contribution to improving the cardiovascular care of athletes in the UK and globally.

Submitting Institution

Liverpool John Moores University

Unit of Assessment

Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism

Summary Impact Type

Health

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Cardiorespiratory Medicine and Haematology

Improving Paralympic athletes performance: Optimising wheelchair configurations and enhancing training strategies

Summary of the impact

This well established research conducted by members of Peter Harrison Centre for Disability Sport (Loughborough University) is seen as an integral part of the support provided for Paralympic wheelchair athletes and has impact in 3 key areas:

  1. To help identify the fundamental characteristics of elite wheelchair athletes and assist with athlete profiling by supporting the Paralympic `performance pathways' to refine their talent identification and confirmation procedures
  2. With the refinement of the testing and monitoring procedures used to assess the physiological and biomechanical demands of wheelchair sport performance
  3. Supporting the education of high-performance coaches by enabling them to gain a better understanding of the technical variables that affect wheelchair mobility performance

Submitting Institution

Loughborough University

Unit of Assessment

Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism

Summary Impact Type

Societal

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Human Movement and Sports Science, Public Health and Health Services
Psychology and Cognitive Sciences: Psychology

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