DrJames Barkell

BPhysEd (ACPE), BEd (Deakin), MEd (Sports Coaching) (USYD), Prof.Dip (Adv. Sports Nutrition) (Barc), PhD (USYD), FTGN

Dr James Barkell is an experienced educator, university academic, and sports coaching specialist with more than 20 years of teaching experience across primary, secondary, and tertiary education. He currently teaches and coordinates several undergraduate and post graduate units at the University of Sydney in the areas of Health and Physical Education, Sports Nutrition, and Sports Coaching. He also supervises PhD and master’s research students. James is an Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA) accredited Sports Scientist and Exerciste Scientist, an Australian Strength & Conditioning Association (ASCA) L2 Coach and a Rugby Australia L4 High Performance Coach. In 2024 he was awarded the Rugby Australia Coach of the Year and a finalist in the Australian Sports Commision awards. 

Before moving into academia, James worked as a senior health and physical education teacher, holding leadership positions including the Head of Sport, HPE Coordinator, and Master in Charge of Rugby. James is a mid-career researcher with more than a dozen publications exploring topics in Sports Performance, Physical Education, Nutrition and Coach Development. His combined skills bring together, classroom teaching, academic research, curriculum leadership, and high-performance coaching to create practical, evidence-informed learning experiences for students.