Leading Academic Links with Athlete Analytics Company

A leading academic at St Mary’s University College, Twickenham, Dr Charles Pedlar, has signed a partnership deal with biomarker analysis company Orreco. Orreco was founded by St Mary’s alumnus Dr Brian Moore and is one of the foremost companies in biomarker analysis for world leading athletes, federations and professional franchises. The partnership will see Dr Pedlar travel around the UK and oversees to work with elite athletes, monitoring and optimising training outcomes and protecting the health and wellbeing of the athlete. Dr Pedlar is both Director of St Mary’s Centre for Health, Applied Sport and Exercise Science (CHASES, encompassing The St Mary’s Clinic) and Academic Director of Research. He is a BASES accredited physiologist and works with a number of Olympic level athletes. His specialist research interest is the effects of altitude and simulated altitude on sleep and exercise in elite athletes. He is also concerned with the health of the endurance athlete, having investigated areas such as iron deficiency and the Female Athlete Triad, and worked closely with sports medicine practitioners. In addition to working with the athletes to maximise their training efforts, Dr Pedlar will use case studies and existing datasets to investigate issues such as vitamin D deficiency and oxidative stress in athletes. Dr Pedlar said, “This is a really exciting opportunity to apply sports science research and practice beyond the local vicinity, engaging with a dynamic company with a unique position in elite sport, globally.  It is also particularly fitting that Dr Moore should return to St Mary’s for input, as a former student” Catherine Sheppard, Director of Enterprise and Business Development at St Mary’s added, “We are delighted that Dr Pedlar has developed such a strong and well-matched partnership with Orreco. We are always keen to identify opportunities for collaborative work with partner organisations, and this is an excellent example of how the high quality research happening at St Mary’s can be applied practically, with huge benefits for all concerned.” CHASES is a centre of excellence for applied sport and exercise science and medicine, operating as an applied research unit and a service provider. It offers a number of facilities including a biomechanics, physiology and nutrition laboratories, high altitude training, strength and conditioning suite and rehabilitation gym.