Associate ProfessorSuzi Edwards

Dr Edwards collaborates with large sporting organisations including the Australian Institute of Sport, the National Rugby League (NRL) and Basketball Australia in Australia and the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Denver Nuggets in the US. Her collaborations include working in multidisciplinary teams at the University where team members bring their specialist skills to understanding a challenge such as minimising the risk of concussion in tackling in rugby league players.

One such NRL-funded research project involved Associate Professor Andrew Gardner, a neuropsychologist with The University of Newcastle, and former NRL star Timana Tahu. This trio’s ground-breaking work on concussion reveals a key area of Suzi’s research focus: technique. What is it about tackling that so regularly leaves rugby league players with concussion? How does the body move in a tackle? Is there tackling techniques that can mitigate the risk of concussion? Their study found that if players could be coached to change their tackling technique from the current ubiquitous method, it would lessen the risk of injury – namely concussion.

Athletes often suffer from hamstring strain and groin injuries, and Suzi is lead investigator on the ‘HAMI’ Study that is exploring this risk factor in elite basketballers funded by the NBA and GE Healthcare. She also collaborates with the Denver Nuggets NBA team.

An element of her work that is close to Suzi’s heart is the real-world application of her research. The concussion study team is utilising the data generated through the research project to develop new evidence-based tackling coaching manuals that can be used to re-educate players, coaches and administrators to make their sport safer. The HAMI study focuses on injury prevention and rehabilitation specifically for basketballers, with results expected to influence the work of coaching staff and clinicians.

Suzi’s work is not all about working with large organisations on an international scale. She takes great pride in the research she is undertaking right down to the community sport level, particularly as she can see the real-world benefits of making sport safer.

“Too often, research doesn’t get to the end user. I sincerely want there to be real-world benefits to my research”, Suzi asserts. “I want youngsters starting out in sport to be taught the correct techniques to keep them safe throughout their sporting journey, and not be burdened with chronic injury as they age. I want professional athletes to be secure in the knowledge that their coaches, administrators and clinical staff are adopting practices to keep them safe. And I really want the athletes themselves to understand their own bodies, and modify their techniques to mitigate their risk of injury.”