n this podcast, Kasper Thornton, Group Director of Human Performance at Right to Dream, discusses the complexities and strategies involved in leading a performance department across multiple clubs. He emphasizes a "person-first" approach, where selecting candidates based on mindset, values, and team fit is prioritized over mere technical skills. This approach is crucial in developing a cohesive and effective performance department across multiple clubs, each with its unique culture and challenges. Kasper shares his journey from a physiotherapist to his current leadership role, highlighting the growth of his organization from a small Danish club to a multinational operation with branches in Ghana, Egypt, and San Diego. A significant focus is on building top-notch facilities and developing talent, particularly in the soccer academies associated with these clubs. He outlines the challenges of recruiting and onboarding personnel across different time zones and cultures, stressing the importance of soft skills and cultural fit in building a successful team. Kasper also discusses the need for an overarching strategy that aligns all clubs within the ownership group, while respecting their individual identities and operational contexts. The recruitment process is streamlined with the help of recruitment agencies, and a grading system is used to ensure the best candidates are selected. Regular staff meetings and global collaboration are key to maintaining alignment and driving continuous improvement within the department. Overall, the podcast provides valuable insights into the strategic and operational aspects of leading a performance department in a multi-club ownership structure, with a focus on people, culture, and continuous development. Main talking points: Prioritise a person-first approach in recruitment. Focus on mindset and values in candidates. Align clubs with an overarching performance strategy. Adapt recruitment to different cultures and contexts. Emphasize soft skills over hard skills. Encourage global collaboration across all clubs. Plan for internal succession and staff development.

Fearghal Kerin, a Rehabilitation Physiotherapist at Chelsea Football Club with a PhD in hamstring injuries, shares invaluable insights on managing T-junction injuries. He discusses the changing dynamics of hamstring injuries, particularly the importance of location-specific rehabilitation strategies. Fearghal emphasizes the need for high-intensity conditioning exercises over traditional low-level resistance workouts. He highlights the significance of a thorough rehabilitation process, ensuring all signs of injury are resolved before athletes return to play, minimizing the risk of reinjury.

Gerard McMahon, an expert challenging conventional beliefs about activation exercises, joins the discussion on their role in sports performance. He argues that these exercises often fall short in enhancing muscle activation for healthy athletes. Instead, he highlights their potential value in rehabilitation. McMahon critiques EMG technology for its inaccuracies in measuring muscle signals, suggesting that traditional activation methods may not prepare athletes effectively for high-intensity activities. He advocates for a shift towards functional training to better mimic actual movement patterns.

Experts in Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) training discuss its vital role in athlete recovery, highlighting its versatility and integration with other modalities. BFR's benefits include improving nutrient intake, muscle recovery, and reducing muscle fatigue. Positive results from BFR use in various sports, male individuals, and during workouts are shared. Combining BFR with ice bath therapy enhances recovery, making it a cost-effective and popular recovery method among athletes.

Sports Scientist Rob Delves from Melbourne Storm discusses the shift towards PowerBI for data analysis and visualization in sports science. He highlights the efficiency of PowerBI over Excel, emphasizing the benefits of streamlined data management, visualization capabilities, and automation for coaches. Rob also touches on the challenges of collecting subjective athlete data and the user-friendly transition from Excel to PowerBI.

Experts Enda King, Ed Gannon, and Steve Short discuss preventing groin injuries in athletes by monitoring training loads, identifying asymmetries, and early warning signs of pain. They emphasize individualized rehab strategies, assessing hip strength, and implementing structured rehab phases for adductor strains. The podcast covers the importance of communication with players, managing competitive load spikes post-rehab, and monitoring hip flexion ratios for injury prevention in sports.

In this episode of the Pacey Performance Podcast, Rob sits down with Physiotherapist and Head of the Assessment Lab at Aspetar, Roula Kotsifaki to delve into the critical role of technology and specific testing protocols in determining an athlete's readiness to return to play after an ACL injury. Roula emphasizes the importance of measuring asymmetries, movement quality, and strength to prevent future injuries. Key highlights include the construction of sensitive testing protocols to measure key competencies. Roula discusses the significance of hop tests and jump tests in identifying asymmetries and the role of landing variability in ACL rehabilitation. She highlights the use of 3D force plates and cameras to accurately assess power metrics and joint contributions during vertical and horizontal jumps, which are crucial for evaluating an athlete's readiness. Roula also details which metrics we should trust and which we shouldn't, and that includes her questioning the use of rate of force development related metrics. Furthermore, Roula stresses that successful return to play after ACL surgery requires comprehensive rehabilitation and shouldn't be determined by a timeline. Just because you are at 9-months post surgery, it doesn't mean that you're ready. Being "ready" should be based on achieving specific competencies. Listeners can gain insights into the best practices for ACL rehabilitation, the use of technology in assessing readiness, and the critical metrics for ensuring a safe and effective return to play. Key points: Importance of technology in ACL rehabilitation. Measure asymmetries to prevent future injuries. Choosing sensitive testing protocols. Hop tests options. 3D force plates assess joint contributions. Problems with rate of force development metrics. Comprehensive rehab before returning to sport. Why the minimum 9 month timeframe for ACL recovery

Three force plate experts, Phil, Matt, and Paul, discuss selecting the right technology for testing purposes, tracking asymmetries with dual force plates, and utilizing real-time feedback for enhanced training decisions. They also dive into jump mechanics metrics for fatigue assessment and performance evaluation, emphasizing the importance of standardized frameworks and reliable data analysis.

Mitch Cholewinski, Coordinator of Football Sports Science at the University of Nebraska, discusses integrating engineering principles into sports science. He emphasizes educating athletes on data collection and involving them in performance decision-making. Mitch stresses the importance of athlete ownership of recovery processes and collaboration with strength coaches to enhance performance using data-driven methods.

In this episode of the Pacey Performance Podcast, Rob is speaking to Consultant, Physio and Biomechanist at the Manchester Institute of Health and Performance, Chris Bramah. Delving into the intricacies of running mechanics, Chris explains the crucial connection between specific movement patterns and the risk of hamstring injuries. Through his expertise, listeners gain an understanding of how lumbar-pelvic control, backside mechanics, and overstriding play pivotal roles in athlete health and performance. The conversation further explores the cutting-edge technology of 3D biomechanics assessments, highlighting their application in elite sports environments including Premier League football clubs, to optimize rehabilitation strategies and return-to-play decisions. Chris then introduces the Sprint Mechanics Assessment Score (S-MAS), a novel, simplified tool he developed—a 12-item score that utilizes basic camera setups to assess movement mechanics effectively during athletes' warm-ups. This tool is designed to enhance the confidence of practitioners in diagnosing and addressing potential issues. The discussion touches on the future of biomechanical assessments in sports, emphasizing the promising yet still evolving role of artificial intelligence and motion capture technologies. Chris shares his holistic approach to integrating clinical research with practical experience, aiming to create a broader impact on patient outcomes and advance the field of sports medicine. Main talking points: The role of 3D biomechanics in rehab and return-to-play. Running mechanics' impact on hamstring injury risks. Sprint mechanics Assessment Score (S-MAS) Lumbo-pelvic control and overstriding prevention. Avoiding S-MAS set up issues Use of AI and motion capture in future assessments. Integrating clinical research with practical applications.