Institute of Sport research

The Institute of Sport has an established a reputation for sports related research. In the most recent nationwide evaluation of our research (REF2014), 97% of our research activity was considered to be internationally recognised with a large element of that being deemed to be world-leading.

The University's REF results and summary table can be accessed here.

Institute Research Lead Professor Iain Greenlees expressed his delight at the results of this assessment: "I'm not surprised by the results of the Research Excellence Framework. Conducting high-quality research that makes a difference in real-world settings is part of the Institute of Sport’s DNA. Since 1982, our research has informed the preparation of elite athletes in a range of highly successful Olympic Sports, such as sailing, cycling and boxing. More recently, our work in enhancing performance in physically-demanding occupations, our work in developing psychological and physical well-being through physical activity in various forms and our work in promoting women’s leadership in sport continues to produce high-quality research publications that contribute to society in many ways. Whilst our common theme is sport and physical activity, our researchers focus an exceptionally diverse range of topics.