Professor Samuele Marcora

Professor Samuele Marcora received his Bachelor in Physical Education from the State University of Milan (Italy). He then studied for an MSc in Human Performance at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (USA), and for a PhD in Clinical Exercise Physiology at the University of Wales-Bangor (UK). After a successful academic career at Bangor University, Professor Marcora began his post as Director of Research at the University of Kent at the end of 2010. His role is to stimulate, coordinate, monitor and assess all research activity within the School  of Sport and Exercise Sciences.

In 2006, Professor Marcora changed his research direction and decided to integrate exercise physiology with motivation psychology and cognitive neuroscience. This psychobiological approach has generated several innovative studies including the effects of mental fatigue on endurance performance and brain training for endurance athletes (Brain Endurance Training). Professor Marcora had been research consultant for MAPEI Sport Service in Italy where he contributed to highly cited research on football and mountain biking physiology.

In his spare time, Professor Marcora enjoys riding his two motorbikes. In 2013, he completed a gruelling 3-month ride from London to Beijing through Central Asia and Tibet to investigate fatigue in motorbike riders. If you are interested in Professor Marcora's research on fatigue in motorbike riders, you can listen to his recent interview on Adventure Rider Radio here.

My current research combines physiology and psychology in a truly interdisciplinary approach to investigate fatigue and endurance performance.

The ultimate goal of my research programme is to find new ways to improve performance of endurance athletes, and reduce physical and mental fatigue in a variety of populations. These populations include soldiers, motorbike riders, and patients affected by diseases such as cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic kidney disease.

My previous research includes research into the mechanisms, assessment and treatment of muscle wasting, and applied sports science research (eg, football training and mountain biking).