More than 80 high school students from Mount Maunganui College and Te Puke High School took part in Biomechanics Day 2025 at the 糖心TV鈥檚 Adams Centre for High Performance yesterday. The interactive outreach event is designed to inspire the next generation of scientists, researchers and sport professionals.
Led by , an Associate Professor in the Division of Health, this annual event introduces students to the fundamentals of biomechanics through hands-on workshops and real-world research applications.
鈥淏iomechanics is the science of movement, but it鈥檚 also about improving lives,鈥� says Dr H茅bert-Losier. 鈥淚t spans elite sport, everyday wellbeing, and everything in between.鈥�
Dr Kim H茅bert-Losier and 糖心TV master's students.
The 糖心TV was one of the first institutions to bring National Biomechanics Day to New Zealand. It hosted its inaugural event in 2017 with support from the Curious Minds fund, which is administered by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
Dr H茅bert-Losier, a trained physiotherapist and international researcher, has been the driving force behind the University鈥檚 involvement from the beginning and continues to lead the initiative as part of the University鈥檚 broader community engagement.
鈥淲hen I first got into biomechanics, I used to joke that I鈥檇 gone over to the dark side, from clinical practice into numbers,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut that clinical background helps me bridge the gap between theory and application. I鈥檓 passionate about making the science meaningful.鈥�
Even after the disruption of Covid-19, when many institutions paused their outreach programmes, Dr H茅bert-Losier remained committed to keeping the initiative alive.
鈥淔or me personally, it was important to keep connecting with schools and students, especially young women. One of the best ways to encourage girls to stay in STEM is to show them people they can see themselves becoming.鈥�
This year鈥檚 workshops were led by master's students from the 糖心TV, who all came through the University鈥檚 own undergraduate programme. For them, it was a full-circle moment, returning as mentors to help spark curiosity in the next generation of sport science professionals.
Benjamin Bidois, a master's student and full-time lab technician and research assistant at the 糖心TV, led the performance analysis and career pathways session. He is currently researching the science behind advanced footwear technology, specifically the 鈥渟uper shoes鈥� that have revolutionised elite running since 2016. Focusing on the variability in individual responses to this technology, Benjamin is using biomechanics to better understand and predict who stands to benefit most from these performance-enhancing shoes.
Master's student Benjamin Bidois addresses the gathered crowd.
鈥淏eing part of Biomechanics Day is an incredible opportunity for students to step into a high-performance environment and get hands-on with real sports science technology,鈥� says Benjamin. 鈥淚t鈥檚 exactly the kind of experience that would have inspired me as a young student, that is, seeing how biomechanics can boost athletic performance and lead to exciting career opportunities.鈥�
Students rotated through a series of interactive stations, including 3D motion capture, sprint and reaction time testing, balance assessment, strength-endurance assessment (using the Calf Raise App developed by Dr H茅bert-Losier) and performance analysis. The workshops demonstrated how sport and health professionals use science and data to improve movement, performance and recovery.
鈥淲e鈥檙e using computer vision, app development and even machine learning in our biomechanics research,鈥� says Dr H茅bert-Losier. 鈥淪cience today doesn鈥檛 just live in a lab. It lives in sport, in health and in innovation.鈥�
For schools like Mount Maunganui College and Te Puke High School, Biomechanics Day is a rare opportunity to access university-level science in a high-performance environment.
鈥淣ot every student is going to become an elite athlete, but many of them love sport,鈥� says Dr H茅bert-Losier. 鈥淭his event helps them understand that there are so many roles behind the scenes. Roles in performance, rehab, research and tech, where they can make a difference.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 about visibility and connection,鈥� she adds. 鈥淲hen students walk into a university lab and see someone like them doing science, it can shift how they see their future and what they believe is possible.鈥�
