Marcus Dunn

I am a specialist in sports engineering and biomechanics. My research focuses on applied measurement in representative and real-world settings, to advance the understanding of human movement in sport and health applications. My PhD research was sponsored by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and developed a markerless (non-invasive), single-camera system to automatically measure player movement and step parameters during elite, match-play tennis. This technology was translated into real-world athletic training and hospital settings, to aid understanding of sprint performance and neurological disorders, respectively. My research has addressed applied measurement solutions for international sports governing bodies (e.g., ITF, Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB)), international sports companies (e.g., Adidas, New Balance Athletics, Babolat), elite sports teams (e.g., British Triathlon, British Cycling), sports infrastructure and test laboratory companies (e.g., TenCate Grass, Labosport Ltd., SportsLabs Ltd.), and NHS Health Trusts (e.g., Sheffield Teaching Hospitals).

The industry-focussed nature of my research has informed real-world change in international football (i.e., 2018 International Match Standard for wearable devices, prepared on behalf of FIFA), developed international industry research partnerships (e.g., Adidas, FIFA), and secured industry match-funded PhD scholarships (e.g., FIFA, TenCate Grass). Recently, my research has addressed biomechanical analyses for field- and clinic-based applications using consumer technologies. This addresses a vast growth in technologies capable of complex human movement analysis but limited by a lack of applied evidence and analysis techniques. I was identified by Innovate UK as a future academic leader conducting commercialisable research and awarded a fellowship to the Innovation to Commercialisation of University Research programme (world leading technology entrepreneur incubator).

I am a current and past Director of the International Sports Engineering Association. I have acted as a reviewer for the Scottish Government’s Chief Scientist Office, for industry body policy statements, and for numerous academic journals. I led and am lead editor of the Football Research I and Football Research II collections, respectively. I have developed and led numerous applied measurement science, applied biomechanics, and entrepreneurship courses at different UK institutions. I have examined six PhD candidates (internally and externally) and have had the pleasure to supervise six PhD candidates to completion and currently supervise five PhD candidates.