Module manager: Simon Walker
Email: s.m.walker@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
This module is not approved as a discovery module
How did the shoe worn by Eliud Kipchoge contribute to the first sub two-hour marathon? What is the science behind helmets designed to reduce injury through impacts? How do you measure and analysis movement and forces during individual and team sports? This module looks at the biomechanics underpinning the latest advances in sports performance and injury prevention and rehabilitation. We will look at a range of topics including the design of sporting equipment, protheses, rehabilitation assistive technologies and devices, and the latest analysis and modelling techniques. Students will partake in one lab using a full 3D motion capture system to look at the effect of shoe design on the kinematics and kinetics of running.
The goal of this module is to use the knowledge from L1 and L2 to gain a deeper understanding of the role played by biomechanics in different sporting activities. This includes recent advances in sporting equipment to improve performance and reduce injuries alongside the latest technologies for recording and analysing kinematics and kinetics.
On completion of the module students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate an understanding of the mechanical principles underlying activities and their assessment using various techniques;
2. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of movement analysis;
3. Apply these principles to analysis of sports performance;
4. Demonstrate key experience in the use of tools for modelling sports activity;
5. Critically engage with the biomechanics research literature related to sports performance;
Students will explore a variety of topics that delve into contemporary techniques for movement analysis and their applications in current research and practice.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| e-Lecture | 8 | 1 | 8 |
| Practical (computer based) | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| Practicals | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Lecture | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Private study hours | 82 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 18 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 100 | ||
Group project work: 40 hours
Reading for lectures: 16 hours
Preparation for assessment: 26 hours.
In-person sessions include time for Q & A and formative feedback on student progress.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Oral Presentation | Individual component (70%) Group component (30%) | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits are the same format as the original work unless otherwise stated.
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 12/05/2025
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