School of Physical Education Sport & Exercise Sciences, University of Otago

18/10/2026

💵 Tautoko Professor Melanie Bussey, School of Physical Education, Sport and Exercise Sciences, who won $100,000 of startup investment in this year's Proof of Concept competition 🥳

🏉 The investment will support the formation of a startup company to commercialise a decision support analytics tool to manage head impact risk in contact sports.

⚽ Proper prevention and timely treatment of sports-related head injuries are essential to ensure athletes’ long-term health and performance.

🧠 To support better interventions and return-to-play decisions, Melanie and her team have created a decision support analytics tool backed by years of research into the science of head impacts.

“The research underpinning this venture centres on instrumented mouthguard technology and head impact biomechanics in contact sport, particularly community and youth rugby," Melanie says.

🧑‍💻 Congratulations also to Ford Iammongkol, from the School of Computing, who won a Postgraduate Researcher Award to support the planning, market research, customer discovery, competitor analysis and business case development for his project. Kia mau te wehi! 🎉

You can read the full story here 👇

https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroom/proof-of-concept-winners-tackle-chronic-pain-and-head-impact-risk

School of Physical Education Sport & Exercise Sciences, University of Otago School of Computing, University of Otago

16/10/2026

Congratulations to all students from the School of Physical Education, Sport and Exercise Sciences who were recognised at the OUSA Blues and Golds awards!

A University of Otago – Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka student who has excelled in basketball and athletics has won the top sports prize at the Blues and Golds Awards.

09/10/2026

SPEX316 students getting real world experiences.

25/09/2026

🫶 School of Physical Education, Sport and Exercise Science tauira Chris Brodie first got into bodybuilding to improve his mental health.

💪 The hobby soon turned into a routine for Chris. Having recently been coaxed by friends and family to compete in a championship after years of training, Chris says he was happy to check it off his bucket list.

“It fired me up to push even harder and, now having done my first competition, I realise how things aren’t as scary as they might initially seem. I’m already looking forward to the next one," Chris says.

🏅 🏅 🏅 Along with a renewed sense of enthusiasm, Chris also took home three medals – first place in an U23 bodybuilding category and second places in the over 75kg and junior classic categories.

🏃 Chris’ passion for fitness translates to his studies at Otago, where he’s currently in his second year at the School of Physical Education, Sport and Exercise Science majoring in physical education, activity and health.

💖 Ka nui te mihi kia koe, Chris – we're proud of you!

https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroom/small-town-boys-turned-bodybuilding-beasts

School of Physical Education Sport & Exercise Sciences, University of Otago

26/08/2026

Check out this interview with Professor Jim Cotter about the work he and Dr Kate Thomas are doing on the physiological effects and risks of cold-water swimming (along with postgrad students Rilee Gould (Masters) and Emma Maultsaid (Honours)):

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16/08/2026

Professor Jim Cotter has some interesting commentary on cold water immersion:

Michelle Brymer has started every day with a four-month cold-plunge routine.

04/08/2026

🌴 Tautoko PhD researcher Mary-Ann Rongo Moller, who is investigating whether naturally warm lagoons could provide an accessible way to lower blood pressure for Cook Islands Māori.

🌺 Her research into lagoon bathing, guided by Indigenous knowledge, aims to help underserved communities treat hypertension.

“We're looking at specifically heart health equity. New Zealand Māori and Cook Islands Māori are really overrepresented in the statistics,” she says.

🫶 Like New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori view health holistically, recognising the connection between people, kōpū tangata (family) and the natural environment.

💞 Mary-Ann believes those cultural understandings have strengthened the research.

“When you're in the water, often people talk about feeling like they're like embraced by something greater than themselves."

🥼 The project builds on research by Clinical Exercise Physiology Lecturer Dr Brendon Roxburgh, whose mahi explores the health benefits of hot and warm water immersion. Mary-Ann joined the project to help translate laboratory findings into a real-world setting. Ka rawe!

https://www.otago.ac.nz/news/newsroom/cook-islands-maori-knowledge-guides-heart-health-study

School of Physical Education Sport & Exercise Sciences, University of Otago

30/07/2026

Where are our grads now? Melodie Robinson (BPhEd) has been appointed at a Sports Industry Specialist by Amazon Web Services! Read all about her amazing career here:

The former Black Ferns player and broadcaster was the ultimate winner after eight rounds of interviews.

08/07/2026

Taking a one-size-fits-all approach to analysing data from smart mouthguards may mean serious injuries are missed, a new University of Otago – Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka-led study shows.

08/07/2026

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