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Prof Bill Baltzopoulos

Sport and Exercise Sciences

Faculty of Science

Email: V.Baltzopoulos@ljmu.ac.uk

Telephone: 0151 904 6272

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Bill Baltzopoulos was appointed as Head of the Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences (RISES) in February 2016.

He is a Professor of Biomechanics and his academic career started at Liverpool University where he completed a PhD on knee joint biomechanics after his undergraduate studies at the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki in Greece. He was then appointed as Lecturer in Biomechanics in 1990 at the Department of Movement Sciences in the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Liverpool. He moved to Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) as a Reader in Biomechanics in 1995 and after a brief period as Associate Professor at the University of Thessaly in Greece between 1999-2001, he returned to the School of Healthcare Sciences in the Faculty of Science and Engineering of MMU as Professor of Biomechanics. He moved to Brunel University London in 2011 where he was was appointed to a Chair in Biomechanics in the Division of Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences and he was the Director of Research in the Department of Life Sciences and the Director of the Centre for Sports Medicine and Human Performance (2014-2016) in the College of Health and Life Sciences.

His main research interests and work are focused on the biomechanics of the musculoskeletal system. His team have unique expertise in using an innovative combination of modern imaging techniques that include X-Ray video, MRI and ultrasound for studying in vivo muscle-tendon and joint function. These techniques allow the development of accurate and individualised biomechanical models of the musculoskeletal system to study joint and muscle forces and the loading of different tissues during various movements, pathological conditions and sports activities. They are the only group in the world that combined isokinetic dynamometry with X-Ray video to examine knee joint and muscle in-vivo function in both static and dynamic conditions. This has led to significant advancements in muscle-tendon mechanics knowledge and applications in the areas of human movement, ageing, rehabilitation, exercise and sport. Their research work has been funded by grants from charitable organisations and the main UK Research Councils in addition to cross research council initiatives such as the New Dynamics of Ageing (NDA), the Canada-UK Aging Initiative and the European Union through an Erasmus Mundus PhD programme network (MOVE-AGE), and more recently from Arthritis Research UK and Action Medical Research in collaboration with colleagues at Brunel and other UK and EU Universities.

He has published over 110 papers with a Citation Index of 4512 and an h-index of 42. He is the author of several book chapters on general muscle function and assessment of muscle strength, and the author of the Isokinetic Dynamometry section of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Science (BASES) guidelines for biomechanical assessment and the lead author of the recent BASES expert position statement on assessment of muscle strength with Isokinetic Dynamometry. He has supervised over 30 PhD and MPhil students, examined more than 10 PhD students at home and abroad and delivered Keynote and other invited presentations at over 40 meetings and Conferences. He was Editor of the Biomechanics Section of the Journal of Sport Sciences (2001-2006) and member of the Editorial Board of various other journals including Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology (Biomechanics), member of the Advisory Board of the European Journal of Applied Physiology and Consulting Editor of the Journal of Biomechanics.

He has experience of working in research council and other funder and research quality assessment organisations both home and abroad. He was appointed to the pool of BBSRC Committee members and served as a BBSRC Committee A member between 2009-10 including the round of applications under the joint BBSRC-UK Sport call on Sports Sciences research linked to the 2012 Olympic Games and he is currently a member of the EPSRC Reviewer College. He was also appointed and served as member and the only biomechanics expert in the RAE 2008 sub-panel on Sport Related Studies (K-46). In the more recent research assessment cycle he was appointed as deputy chair of sub-panel 26 (Sport and Exercise Sciences) in Main Panel C of the Research Excellence Framework 2014 (REF2014).

He is a member of various professional and scientific associations including ISB, ESB, ECSS, ISBS (Board of Directors 1999-2001) and a Fellow of BASES having served in various roles of the Association (Biomechanics Section Education Committee 1996-1998, Biomechanics Section Chair 1998-1999, BASES Executive Committee 1998-1999). He was also a founding member and first Chair of the Greek Society of Biomechanics (2005-2007).

Research areas:

Biomechanics of the musculoskeletal system in normal and pathological conditions
Musculoskeletal modelling for optimising performance, predicting joint loading and preventing musculoskeletal injuries in sport and exercise
Muscle and tendon in vivo function and implications for performance
Ageing of the musculoskeletal system and biomechanical implications for mobility, stair negotiation and falls
Muscle and joint function assessment, training and rehabilitation using Isokinetic Dynamometry
Development of novel imaging techniques for the assessment of in vivo musculoskeletal function

Academic appointments

Head of the Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences (RISES), School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, 2016 - present

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