2017 PINES IOC sports nutrition scholarship winners
With the generous support of Sportsoracle, PINES is able to offer two IOC Diploma in Sport Nutrition Scholarships. These scholarships are awarded annually, based on applications by candidates from all corners of the world. The scholarships provide for a 50% reduction in fees over the two years of study. Please find below a short introduction of Marta Kozior and Juliane Heydenreich, the two PINES members who were successful in their application for the IOC Diploma in Sports Nutrition International Scholarship.
Marta Kozior, MSc — Poland
I come from Poland where I accomplished my BSc (2013) and MSc (2015) degrees in Dietetics at Poznan University of Life Sciences. I graduated from the University as the Winner of the best master’s dissertation in 2014/2015 academic year at Poznan University of Life Sciences and as the 2nd Award Winner at the 15th International Congress of Young Medical Scientists (Public Health Section) which took placed in Poland (2015).
My strong interest in sports nutrition led me to apply for additional traineeship as a Research Assistant in sports nutrition at University of Stirling, UK (2015). I was looking for additional scientific development in this area so I commenced the IOC Diploma in Sports Nutrition Programme from January 2016 and became a member of the Professionals in Nutrition for Exercise and Sport.
Along with thriving in the practical side of clinical dietetics in Poland I have also been learning foundations about sports nutrition through the IOC Diploma. Currently I work as a Research Assistant in sports nutrition, sports performance and healthy ageing at the University of Limerick, Ireland.
Further benefits from the IOC Diploma are to gain experience in sports nutrition building on the knowledge which I have been attaining from the beginning of IOC Programme.
In future I would like to support Polish athletes, at all levels including but not exclusively Olympic athletes. I would like to volunteer in conducting meetings with teenage athletes who are lacking education in sports nutrition requirements. Working with the population can influence the health and performance of athletes over a lifetime.
The growing awareness of the importance of sports nutrition in Poland ideally positions Sports Dieticians to have significant impact across sporting disciplines.
Juliane Heydenreich, MSc — Germany
I am coming from Germany, where I have finished my Diploma in Sports Science (2011; University of Potsdam) and MSc degree in Nutrition and Biomedicine (2014; Technical University of Munich). Since 2014 I am working in the unit of Energy Metabolism at the Swiss Federal Institute of Sports Magglingen (SFISM) and doing my PhD in Life Sciences at the University of Lausanne. In the past, I was an ambitionous Volleyball player, but now my focus is more on mountain activities, such as climbing, hiking, alpinism or mountain running.
Both in Germany and Switzerland the research area of sports nutrition is not very established. Although both countries are highly developed, the link between adequate sports nutrition and athletic performance is often not realized. Only few national funding support research in the area of sports nutrition and only few researchers have time, funds and expertise in performing this research. So far, there exist no German sports nutrition journal and no university course. Currently, there is the idea to build up a network of sports nutritionists in Germany and Switzerland. However, this network needs more experienced researchers to be involved, in order to develop and discuss research questions, design new studies, but also to discuss the most updated recommendations for athletes. In addition, strategies must be developed in order to strengthen the field of sports nutrition in Germany and Switzerland and to provide trustable information about healthy and safe sports nutrition for coaches, athletes and medical personnel.
In my opinion, with the IOC Diploma in Sports Nutrition I will be able to support the establishment of a sports nutrition network and further strengthen the small scientific community. The course will enhance my abilities to not only perform sports nutrition research, but will also improve my knowledge for athletes counseling. I will get know the most updated news and recommendations in the sports nutrition area and will get an insight into possible future topics. In addition, this course will also improve my scientific knowledge and will help me in order to design, conduct, analyze, and present my research. It will be a pleasure for me to be part of the course and I am looking forward to start the lectures!
