Keynote speakers |
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Prof. John Buckley
John’s career in sport (originally as a tennis coach) and in exercise and health (exercise physiologist) has spanned over 30 years. It includes having set up his own exercise, fitness and physiotherapy business in Shrewsbury and managing it with his physiotherapy partners for 21 years. In parallel to this, since 1989 he has held part-time teaching and research posts initially in the School of Physiotherapy at Keele University (1989-2006) where he gained his PhD in 2003, and then in 2006, moving to the University of Chester to lead up the MSc in Cardiovascular Rehabilitation. Since 1999, he has also held the position of Exercise Physiologist at the national McArdle Disease Clinic, which is now based at the MRC Neuromuscular Centre, University College Hospital London.
He has held positions of national and international leadership in sport and exercise science and cardiovascular health and rehabilitation, including: President of the British Association for Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation (2009-2011); Chair of the BASES Division of Physical Activity for Health (2003 – 2007); Advisory panel member, Department of Health Commissioning Guide for Cardiac Rehabilitation; Expert panel advisor to Skills Active (Since 2002); Co-chair and co-author of the International Charter on Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation.
John's health & recreation pursuits and hobbies include playing tennis as a member of the Shropshire County Senior Men's team, and Trumpeter at the Shrewsbury Cathedral and in small Jazz ensembles.
Prof. Andreas Daffertshofer
Prof. Daffertshofer studied complex dynamics of motor-related neural systems and its formal and conceptual assessment in terms of nonlinear dynamics and non-equilibrium statistics. Research activities cover spatio-temporal aspects of neural synchronization for information transfer during perceptual-motor tasks.Over the years, he appropriated various methods for the analysis of multivariate signals for kinematic, electromyographic and encephalographic data. For example, he developed methods for the extraction of principal or independent components in the vicinity of qualitative changes in motor performance yielding a significant reduction of dimension and thus allowing for the analysis of motor (in-)stabilities, in general, and for classifying (switches between) gait patterns, in particular, including the patterns of accompanying cortical activity. Furthermore, he added to several research fields in theoretical physics, ranging from quantum information to diffusive systems and generalized thermostatistics.He is currently working on the link between sensorimotor performance and neural synchronization using neuro-physiologically motivated stochastic neural models, bifurcation theory, and graph theory. This includes several PhD and Research Master projects involving both experimental approaches and theoretical ideas, also to investigate the interplay of dynamical and stochastic aspects of complex neural networks.
Prof. Dario Farina
Dario Farina received PhD degrees in automatic control and computer science and in electronics and communications engineering from the Ecole Centrale de Nantes, Nantes, France, and Politecnico di Torino, Italy, in 2001 and 2002, respectively. He is currently Full Professor and Chair in Neurorehabilitation Engineering at the Department of Bioengineering of the Imperial College London, UK. He has previously been Full Professor at Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark, (until 2010) and at the University Medical Center Göttingen, Georg-August University, Germany, where he founded and directed the Department of Neurorehabilitation Systems (2010-2016).
His research focuses on biomedical signal processing, neurorehabilitation technology, and neural control of movement. Within these areas, he has (co)-authored >420 papers in peer-reviewed Journals, which have currently received cumulatively >21,000 citations, and over 500 among conference papers/abstracts, book chapters, and encyclopedia contributions. Professor Farina has been the President of the International Society of Electrophysiology and Kinesiology (ISEK) (2012-2014) and is currently the Editor-in-Chief of the official Journal of this Society, the Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology.
He is also currently an Editor for IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering and the Journal of Physiology, and previously covered editorial roles in several other Journals. He is a Fellow IEEE, AIMBE, EAMBES.
Dr. Mindy F. Levin
Dr. Levin trained as a physiotherapist at McGill University and practiced for several years at the Rehabilitation Institute of Montreal where she specialized in neurological rehabilitation. She then obtained a M.Sc. degree in Clinical Sciences from the University of Montreal followed by a Ph.D. in Physiology from McGill University under the directorship of Dr. Christina Hui-Chan. She completed an additional two years of post-doctoral training in neurophysiology at the University of Montreal under the co-directorship of Drs. Yves Lamarre and Anatol G. Feldman. From 1992 to 2004, Dr. Levin held positions as researcher and professor in the School of Rehabilitation at the Université de Montréal. She taught courses at the undergraduate and graduate level mainly in the areas of electrotherapy and neurology. Dr. Levin was Scientific Director of the Research Centre of the Rehabilitation Institute of Montreal from 1997 until November 2001. She was a Research Scholar of the Fonds de la Recherche en Santé du Québec from 1992 until 2004. In 2004, Dr. Levin became the Director of the Physical Therapy Program in the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy at McGill University until 2008 and was awarded a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Motor Recovery and Rehabilitation (2005-2012, 2012-2019).
Dr. Levin served as President of the International Society of Motor Control from 2005 to 2008 and is currently editor of the Society’s journal “Motor Control”. She was a founding member and is immediate Past-President of the International Society for Virtual Rehabilitation as well as a founding member and current executive member of the International Neurological Physiotherapy Association of the World Physical Therapy Association.
Dr. Levin’s research focuses on elucidating the mechanisms underlying arm sensorimotor deficits and their recovery in adults and children with central nervous system lesions. Her research program aims to elaborate the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying disordered motor control and learning after brain damage and then to develop and test treatment interventions to remediate sensorimotor impairments and disabilities based on these findings. Amongst her research methodologies are new technologies such as virtual reality and robotics.
Prof. Kathleen Martin Ginis
Prof. Kathleen Martin Ginis is the Reichwald Family Chair in Preventive Medicine at University of British Columbia’s Southern Medical Program. She is also a UBC Distinguished University Scholar, Professor in the School of Health and Exercise Sciences, and an ICORD Principal Investigator.
Prof. Martin Ginis completed her B.Sc. in Psychology at the University of Toronto, her PhD in Kinesiology at the University of Waterloo, and a postdoctoral fellowship at Wake Forest University.
Her research program focuses on physical activity behaviour change, and the psychosocial consequences of physical activity participation. She has a particular interest in spinal cord injury and established the SCI Action Canada partnership in 2007 to advance physical activity participation research and knowledge translation for people with SCI.
Prof. Martin Ginis has received over $11 million in research funding. She currently holds a $2.6M SSHRC Partnership Grant to study social participation among people with physical disabilities (The Canadian Disability Participation Project www.cdpp.ca). She has published over 250 peer-reviewed research articles and book chapters.
Her research frequently appears in the media and has been featured on CBC's Quirks & Quarks, and in “O” The Oprah Magazine, Men’s Health & Fitness, and Shape Magazine, among others.
In 2014, the Government of Ontario recognized Dr. Martin Ginis’s long-standing contributions to science designed to improve the lives of people with spinal cord injury, by awarding her the Ontario Medal of Good Citizenship.
Prof. Martin Ginis resides in Kelowna, British Columbia where she loves to run, snowshoe, and kayak with her husband and daughter.
Prof. Brett Smith
Professor Brett Smith, PhD, holds a Chair in Physical Activity and Health and is the Director of Research in the School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Birmingham, UK. He is a leading expert on disability, health, and physical activity. He is also internationally recognised as a methodologist in qualitative research. Numerous funding bodies, such as the ESRC, Public Health England, and Disability Rights UK, have supported the research he often co-creates with disabled people. Brett’s work has been published widely in leading journals, such as Health Psychology, Social Science and Medicine, and Disability and Rehabilitation. In addition to 200+ publications, Brett has given over 30 keynotes and 150 invited talks to audiences around the world. He is founder and former Editor of the international journal Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health (QRSEH). Currently he an Associate Editor of Psychology of Sport and Exercise (PSE) and Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology (SEPP). Brett’s latest book is the Routledge Handbook of Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise (2016).
Prof. Walter R. Thompson
Prof. Dr. Walt Thompson is Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research and a tenured Regents’ Professor of Kinesiology and Health (College of Education & Human Development) and in the School of Public Health, and in the Department of Nutrition (College of Nursing and Health Professions) at Georgia State University in Atlanta. Prior to joining the faculty at Georgia State University in 1994, Dr. Thompson was a tenured Professor of Exercise Science and Director of the Laboratory for Applied Physiology at the University of Southern Mississippi and Program Director for the Center for Cardiac Rehabilitation and Health Enhancement at Swedish Covenant Hospital in Chicago. He has also held adjunct academic appointments at Northeastern Illinois University and at George Williams College. Dr. Thompson has been the Chairman of the ACSM Committee on Certification and Education, Chairman of the ACSM International Relations Committee, Chairman of the ACSM American Fitness Index, Chairman of the ACSM Publications Committee, and the Founding Chairman of the Committee on Accreditation for the Exercise Sciences for the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs.
He has given lectures on health-related topics in 26 different countries (some multiple times) on the continents of Europe, Africa, North America, South America (including Central America), and Asia. Dr. Thompson also serves on the Sports Science Committee of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) where he is charged with the coordination of international research projects at all IPC sanctioned events (including the winter games in PyeongChang). Dr. Thompson has published over 125 research-based, peer-reviewed articles on many different topics and has received over $35 million in funding for his various initiatives. He has authored or has edited 14 books. He served as Senior Editor for the 8th edition of ACSM’s Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription. His current interests include wellness coaching as a primary mechanism for behavior change and the integration of sport and physical activity for people with disabilities. Because of his personal interest in at-risk kids living in the inner city, he serves as the Executive Director of the After-School All-Stars Atlanta, a comprehensive after-school initiative for middle school aged children now in 23 sites with an average daily attendance of 3000 and 1600 in summer academies. Dr. Thompson has served on the ACSM Board of Trustees and was twice elected to its Administrative Council. He now serves as the President of the American College of Sports Medicine.
Esther Vergeer
Esther Vergeer is one of the greatest Dutch athletes of all time. For years, she was the unquestioned number one female wheelchair tennis player in the world. For almost her whole career, wheelchair tennis player Esther Vergeer remained undefeated. Esther won 470 consecutive singles matches, which made her one of the most successful athletes in Dutch sport history. On February 12 2013, Esther, who was awarded the Laureus World Sports Award in 2002 and 2008, ended her impressive career. In December 2016, she was awarded with the Fanny Blankers-Koen Career Award, an award for the biggest Dutch sports heroes.
At the moment, Esther is the tournament director of the ABN AMRO World Wheelchair Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam. Alongside Richard Krajicek, she is responsible for the organization of the wheelchair tennis tournament and integrating it with the ATP 500 tournament of Rotterdam. Furthermore, she is a NOC*NSF advisor for the Dutch Paralympic team. As a mentor for talented Paralympic athletes and deputy Chef de Mission, she promoted the development of sports for disabled athletes before, during and after the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. Esther was the Chef de Mission of Paralympic Team NL during the Games in PyeongChang_2018.
