Top Middlesex sports scientist wins prestigious strength and conditioning award

Dr Chris Bishop, Head of Department at Middlesex’s London Sports Institute, was praised for his golf performance and training studies

A leading Middlesex sports scientist has won a hotly contested award from the UK’s national body for strength and conditioning practitioners.

Dr Chris Bishop received the 2026 Coach of the Year Award for Education and Research from the UK Strength and Conditioning Association (UKSCA) at its annual conference, held at the University of Nottingham.

The award hails Dr Bishop’s “contribution to research, practitioner education and the sharing of knowledge,” capturing his record of publications in key strength and conditioning topic areas, and his more than 30 research collaborations so far this calendar year.

Dr Bishop, Head of Department at Middlesex’s London Sport Institute, is known for his work on interlimb asymmetry – which determines whether differences between the two sides of the body affect athlete function and performance.

He has also produced numerous peer-reviewed publications in the golf performance science space: most recently, a major study into the effects of physical training on golfers’ swing speed, ball speed and distance, produced in collaboration with the Danish Golf Union and members of the Science and Medical Advisory Committee of golf’s governing body, The Royal & Ancient. Dr Bishop sits on the R&A committee as one of his external appointments, alongside working with two of the largest professional golf tours, the DP World Tour and Ladies European Tour.

At the UKSCA conference, Dr Bishop held a practical strength and conditioning session for 100 delegates, showcasing why unilateral methods - focused on one side of the body - should be considered a high priority in strength training.

Dr Bishop chaired the UKSCA board from 2017-2021 and is currently Editor-in-Chief of the organisation’s peer-reviewed Professional Strength & Conditioning Journal.

In its citation for the award, the UKSCA said: “Alongside an extensive academic research profile, Chris has made a long-standing contribution to the Professional Strength & Conditioning Journal (PSCJ) and wider development of evidence-informed practice within the profession. His work has helped practitioners engage with research in a way that is both relevant and applicable to real-world coaching.”

They added the award “is an important reminder that progressing the profession relies not only on what happens in coaching environments, but also on our ability to question practice, generate evidence and share what we learn.”

Dr Bishop said: “The UKSCA is an organisation I hold dear to my heart, so receiving an award from them felt very special.

“Also, these awards are never really a solo effort. There were lots of collaborations with colleagues and friends which have had a really meaningful impact. I want to say a big thank you to all of them: they know who they are.”

Middlesex Professor Anthony Turner, Post-Graduate research lead at the London Sports Institute, who has worked as a strength and conditioning coach and consultant to numerous Olympic and Paralympic athletes and sports teams, is a previous winner of the same UKSCA Education and Research award.

The UKSCA regulates and disseminates best practice for the profession.

Find out more about the courses at the Middlesex London Sports Institute.