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London City Lionesses is delighted to announce an exciting new higher education partnership with Middlesex University’s London Sport Institute.
The new collaboration will give the club’s top professional players and coaches access to high quality sports science and rehabilitative services designed to enhance performance.
London City Lionesses, play out of Princes Park Stadium in Dartford, Kent and compete in the FA Women’s Championships, which is the second tier of English women’s professional football.
Lionesses staff and players can now benefit from working with MDX staff and student performance analysts, sports nutritionists and strength & conditioning coaches, and if they wish, embark on educational courses offered by Middlesex University. It is hoped that this aspect of the relationship will be able to be extended to include London City Lionesses supporters and followers.
The partnership will also provide a rewarding chance for MDX students to enjoy work experience placements with the club and apply their sports and rehabilitative skills on real top-class athletes.
MDX sports science academics and students are also likely to be carrying out major research projects for the club analysing performance, fitness, sport psychology and nutrition.
The research collaboration between MDX and the Lionesses will be focused on the enhancement and advancement of ‘Women in Sport’. According to the charity Women In Sport, set up to transform sport for the benefit of every girl and woman in the UK, 26% of women are ‘inactive’ carrying out less than 30 minutes of physical activity each week.
Dr Rhonda Cohen, Head of Middlesex University’s London Sports Institute, said: “This very exciting partnership will boost education, research which can impact women’s sport which is really underrepresented and contribute towards the idea of lifelong fitness.
“The partnership is reciprocal so the club will benefit from our outstanding sports science facilities and expertise, while the students will be afforded the exciting opportunity to develop their learning with top level professional athletes.
“Overall, our aim is to try and engage women into sport because it has great benefits in giving people more self-confidence, a positive body image and in helping young people learn how to deal with success and failure, while teaching the importance of teamwork and resilience.”
The facilities in the London Sports Institute include a human movement laboratory (sport physiology lab, strength conditioning specialist room) where top athletes, including London 2012 Olympians, have been assessed, a health and injury clinic and a clinical therapy room which supports student learning and athletes.
Diane Culligan, London City Lionesses Chair, said “We are absolutely delighted to be working with Rhonda Cohen to form London City Lionesses’ first higher education partnership with Middlesex University and the London Institute of Sport. This exciting collaboration will focus on a number of areas such as supporting our players with the full range of performance services, the development of research into women in sport and educational opportunities for both our players and staff.
The partnership will also, we believe, provide students with hands on experience within an elite sporting context. We believe this will be the start of a long and fruitful relationship with the University and Institute that will deliver some real tangible mutual support and benefit to all parties.”
London City Lionesses Head Coach Lisa Fallon added “Providing the best possible environment off the pitch for our players to perform at their optimum on it, is very important and I’m excited that this new partnership will be another enhancement to the professional environment here at London City Lionesses. My team and I are looking forward to working with the students and staff at Middlesex.”
