Achieving Personal Best: Women in Sports Technology

Dr Heather Driscoll: President of the International Sports Engineering Association and Lecturer of Mechanical Engineering , Manchester Metropolitan University

Dr Heather Driscoll is a lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University. She graduated from University of Bath in 2008 and went on to complete a PhD with the Centre for Sports Engineering Research at Sheffield Hallam University. Her research specialism is in Sports Engineering, focussing on athlete-equipment interactions. Heather is currently the President of the International Sports Engineering Association and serves on the editorial board of the IMechE Journal of Sports Engineering and Technology.   

Dr Steph Forrester: Senior Lecturer in Sports Technology, Loughborough University

Dr Steph Forrester studied Chemical Engineering at the University of Edinburgh (BEng, 1991) and University of Cambridge (PhD, 1995).  After spending a year working for AstraZeneca, Steph spent seven years as a professional triathlete competing in the Sydney Olympics and winning the World Duathlon Championships the same year.  

Steph returned to academia in 2005 completing an MSc in Sports Biomechanics at Loughborough University and remained at Loughborough to take up a lectureship in Sports Technology in 2008, progressing to senior lecturer in 2012.  

Steph is currently Programme Director for the undergraduate Sports Technology degree programme and Deputy Associate Dean for Enterprise for Wolfson School of Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering.  

Steph has published more than 90 peer-reviewed journal and conference articles, has given seven invited presentations at sports engineering related conferences and completed research projects for several leading sports brands including Mizuno, Nike and Umbro.  Steph’s research primarily focuses on human-equipment interactions within sport with particular focus on the performance of artificial turf and on running biomechanics.

Alice Bullas: Centre for Sports Engineering Research (CSER), Sheffield Hallam University

Alice is a PhD student in the Centre for Sports Engineering Research (CSER) at Sheffield Hallam University, studying the application of surface imaging systems within sport. As part of this work, Alice is aiming to establish the validity of a low cost system, explore traditional anthropometrics in an unprecedented manner and determine the importance of complex anthropometrics in sprint cycling kinanthropometry. 

Prior to starting her PhD, Alice graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University with a first class honours BSc and an MSc in Sports and Exercise Sciences. Following this, Alice joined CSER in 2013 as a graduate-intern. During this time she explored the use of array electrodes in the induction of motor cortical plasticity and the suitability of the Microsoft Kinect in head tracking for rehabilitation. Alongside her PhD work Alice plays an active role within the department, engaging in external consultancy projects, such as Channel 4 Speed with Guy Martin.

Christina King: Business Development Manager, Health and Wellbeing Research Institute (Sport)

Christina has been a champion of engineering, science and technology for over 12 years.  Just in the last 2 years she has invented a new product (patent pending), written and presented on the Olympic Legacy in Canada and broken a world speed record on the popular Channel 4 programme ‘Speed with Guy Martin’.

An award winning graduate in Mechanical Engineering Christina developed change management skills in defence manufacturing before going on to build and test Challenger 2 battle tanks. Now at Sheffield Hallam University, Christina is responsible for developing collaborations and business for the research centres in the Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, the Centre for Sports Engineering Research and the Centre for Sport and Exercise Science. She also collaborates with external agencies such as Devices for Dignity.

Her diverse experience has involved team leadership and operations management, strategy development and implementation and new product design and commercialisation. She has also been fundamental in securing funding for the Olympic Legacy: National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine (£10m) and the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (£14m).

Reg Clark: Group CEO , Rhino-Powa Holdings Ltd

Reg is Group CEO of Rhino-Powa Holdings Ltd, manufacturer and distributor of a wide range of sporting products, with its foundations and origins primarily in rugby.  Reg started his career in the 1980 working for Kobe Steel in Japan.  

He returned to the UK and worked in the City for five years before returning to Kobe Steel as European Finance Director until 1997.  Reg specialised as an advisor to and investor in the SME sector working on a wide variety of projects across many industries, before going full time with Rhino in late 2006 when he staged a management buy-in of the company with former England rugby Captain and Manager Martin Johnson.  

Reg is a Fellow of the Securities Institute and the Institute of Consulting and outside of his professional career has been active in politics, having been party Treasurer for the Liberal Democrats.