Professor of Sport & Exercise Science, University of Southern Queensland
Stephen P. Bird, PhD., is a Professor in Sport an Exercise Science and Director of Sport in the School of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ). An internationally recognised performance scientist and strength and conditioning coach, Stephen has led athlete support systems for elite sport programs across six countries. His career includes participation in 26 pinnacle sporting events, including two Olympic Games, culminating in Olympic gold. Stephen’s career spans professional roles in the NRL, NBL, and WNBL, alongside major international events, including the Commonwealth and Olympic Games, FIBA Asia Cup and EuroBasket, Rugby League World Cup, and UCI Mountain Bike World Cup and World Championships. He has held key high-performance roles such as Senior Performance Advisor for the NSW Swifts (2021 Suncorp Super Netball Champions), Performance Team Lead for Basketball New Zealand (2020–2024), and currently serves as Strength and Conditioning Lead for GB Basketball (Women) for the Los Angeles Olympic cycle. Stephen is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Strength and Conditioning and Associate Editor for the Journal of Australian Strength and Conditioning. At UniSQ, Stephen leads the Student-Athlete Empowerment Project “2 WIN”, a comprehensive program designed to support student-athlete development through innovative education and research initiatives. 2 WIN aims to inspire and develop the next generation of champions. His ongoing research focuses on optimising health and performance in student-athletes and female athlete populations.
‘Pressure makes diamonds’: how Australian sprint sensation Gout Gout can get even faster
Dec 12, 2024 02:50 am UTC| Insights & Views Sports
At just 16 years of age, Gout Gout captured the worlds attention with his record-breaking performance at the Australian National All-Schools Championships. He ran an extraordinary 20.04 seconds for the 200m, breaking a...