Featured Post from University of Delaware

Gold medal-worthy experts for Olympic Summer Games coverage

Topics include health, injuries, business and science

Jul 23, 2024

2 min

The University of Delaware boasts several experts who can comment on health-related topics such as injuries and training and business-focused areas like marketing and team behavior as they relate to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

Matt Robinson

Professor, sport management

Relevant expertise: Will be in Paris and can discuss the Olympics from an onsite perspective; can give the backstory on The International Coaching Enrichment Certificate Program (ICECP) and what’s new in the Paris Olympics.

Link to profile and contact

Tom Kaminski

Professor, kinesiology and applied physiology

Relevant expertise: Can comment on the impact of heading in Olympic soccer and has studied the risks of concussions in sports for nearly three decades.

Link to profile and contact

Karin Silbernagel

Professor, physical therapy

Relevant expertise: Research aims to advance the understanding of tendon and ligament injuries and repair. Can also discuss sailing.

Link to profile and contact

Tim DeSchriver

Associate professor, sport management

Relevant expertise: Sport finance, economics and marketing

Link to profile and contact

Other experts:

INJURIES:

Tom Buckley

Associate professor, kinesiology and applied physiology

Relevant expertise: Head impacts from boxing.

Stephanie Cone

Assistant professor, biomedical engineering

Relevant expertise: Studies the structure-function relationship that exists in tendons and ligaments with a special interest in changes in this relationship during growth and following injury.

Mike Eckrich

Clinical instructor, physical therapy

Relevant expertise: Weightlifting; can talk about the difference between men’s and women’s injuries and form in the sport.

Donald Ford

Physical therapy

Relevant expertise: Shoulder injuries/rehab expert

Jeffrey Schneider

Senior instructor, kinesiology and applied physiology

Relevant expertise: Athletic training and injury prevention, with a particular interest in ice skating injuries.

Worked with athletes competing in Winter Olympics (2002, 2006) as a strength and conditioning coach and athletic trainer.

EVENTS:

Jocelyn Hafer

Assistant professor, kinesiology and applied physiology

Relevant expertise: Race Walk events and how biomarkers are used in walking studies.

Airelle Giordano

Associate professor, physical therapy

Relevant expertise: Gymnastics; she was a collegiate gymnast

Kiersten McCartney

Doctoral student

Relevant expertise: Can chat about Paralympic Triathlon (running, hand cycling, swimming).

Steve Goodwin

Associate professor, health behavior and nutrition sciences

Relevant expertise: He is also in Paris leading a study abroad cohort. He has been to multiple Olympics, and can also speak to on-site experience, differences in games, etc.

George Edelman

Adjunct professor, physical therapy

Relevant expertise: How the "underwaters” technique gives Olympians an edge.

BUSINESS:

John Allgood II

Instructor, sport management

Relevant expertise: Sport business management, event management

SCIENCE:

Joshua Cashaback

Assistant professor, biomedical engineering

Relevant expertise: Specializes in neuromechanics and control of human movement. His research falls under two major themes: The neuroplasticity and adaptation research line tests how reinforcement feedback can subserve our ability to acquire new motor skills.

Connect with:

Matthew Robinson

Professor, Sport Management

Prof. Robinson is an expert on international sport development.

CoachingSports as a Diplomatic ToolInternational Sports GovernanceU.S. Sports ModelOlympics

Tom Kaminski

Professor, Kinesiology and Applied Physiology

Prof. Kaminski is a leading expert on issues related to purposeful headers in interscholastic and intercollegiate soccer.

Chronic Ankle InstabilityRepetitive Head ImpactsRecovery Assessment

Tim DeSchriver

Associate Professor of Sport Management; Area Head - Sport Management

Prof. DeSchriver’s research is in sport finance, economics and marketing; specifically professional sport and collegiate athletics.

Sport ManagementSports FinanceProfessional SportCollegiate Athletics

Karin Gravare Silbernagel

Professor, Physical Therapy

Prof. Silbernagel's research aims to advance the understanding of tendon and ligament injuries and repair.

Achilles TendinopathyPatellar TendinopathyAchilles Tendon RuptureTendon RuptureKnee Injuries

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Blood Clots Can Sideline Elite Athletes. Could Microrobots Offer a New Approach?

Blood clots have sidelined or ended the careers of several elite athletes, drawing attention to a potentially life-threatening condition. The University of Delaware's Sambeeta Das is part of a team that has developed tiny, magnetically guided robots that could offer a new approach to removing such blockages. The list of athletes affected by blood clots includes NBA champion Chris Bosh, whose career ended after recurring clots; tennis great Serena Williams, who survived two life-threatening pulmonary embolisms; San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, who was shut down in February 2025 when deep vein thrombosis was discovered in his right shoulder; and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, whose recent diagnosis of blood clots in his lungs has drawn national attention. In a published study, Das and her colleagues demonstrated that magnetic microrobots could mechanically break apart clusters of human liver cancer cells and clear them from narrow channels designed to model blood vessels. The robots used mechanical forces rather than drugs or chemicals to disperse the clusters. The research offers an early proof of concept for using microrobots to remove unwanted cellular material in confined spaces. Das can discuss how the technology works, its potential application to blood-clot removal, the challenges of targeting blockages inside the body, and what further research is needed to explore its use in patients. To contact Das and arrange an interview, visit her profile and click the “Contact” button. Reporters can also email MediaRelations@udel.edu.

Oct 20, 2026

2 min

From Baseball to Business: The Science of Team Success

The ingredients that create a World Series team often mirrors how units achieve success in business. How did they get there? The University of Delaware's Kyle Emich says the answer goes beyond assembling a roster of star players. Emich, a professor of management, says that how players combine their strengths, respond to opponents and create opportunities together can be just as important as individual talent. The same is true in business, where a collection of talented employees doesn’t automatically translate into a high-performing team, he said. One example is the approach that the 2026 Milwaukee Brewers’ took during their postseason run. Rather than relying exclusively on home runs and individual star power, the team created opportunities through a combination of speed, patience at the plate, timely hitting and pressure on opposing defenses. A stolen base, a walk or a defensive mistake might seem like a small event on its own, but the effects can build as players’ actions interact. These interactions matter, he says, because teams are not simply collections of individuals; their performance emerges from how people and their activities affect one another within a larger environment. The same is true in business as well as baseball. Businesses may recruit exceptional employees or invest in promising technologies such as artificial intelligence, yet fail to realize their potential if their processes, team structures and working practices don’t support those strengths. Emich can discuss: • Beyond Moneyball: What baseball’s emphasis on statistics and individual talent reveals about the limits of evaluating people in isolation. • Building better teams: How coordination, complementary strengths and the interaction among team members contribute to performance. • Strategy and competition: What baseball teams’ adjustments to opponents can teach business leaders about responding to competitors and changing conditions. • Technology and the future of work: Why adopting artificial intelligence or other new technologies is not enough without considering how people, processes and technology work together. To reach Emich directly and arrange an interview, visit his profile page and click on the "contact" button. Interested reporters can also send an email to MediaRelations@udel.edu.

Oct 19, 2026

2 min

NBA stars and Achilles injuries: The road back to peak performance

A new NBA season brings plenty of storylines, from star players in new uniforms to the debut of promising rookies. But for players recovering from Achilles tendon injuries, returning to the court is just the beginning, says the University of Delaware's Karin Grävare Silbernagel. Regaining strength, explosiveness and consistent performance can take longer to achieve, said Silbernagel, a professor of physical therapy who studies tendon injuries and rehabilitation, with a focus on Achilles tendon ruptures, ankle function and long-term physical performance. Her research explores why recovery involves more than healing tissue or returning to competition. Strength, movement, tendon function and the ability to perform under the demands of sport all matter, she said. In a recent study, Silbernagel and colleagues examined single-leg jumping in people about two years after an Achilles tendon rupture. They found that fatigue affected ankle power differently on the injured and uninjured sides, highlighting how an injury can influence movement and the way the body distributes physical demands even well into recovery. Silbernagel can discuss: • Why returning to the court does not necessarily mean an NBA player has regained full strength, explosiveness or durability. • How clinicians assess recovery and readiness to return to sport after an Achilles tendon rupture. • How rehabilitation, progressive loading and return-to-sport testing can help guide recovery. • What research reveals about lingering changes in movement and function after tendon injuries. • What Achilles injuries can mean for athletic performance over time. Silbernagel leads the Delaware Tendon Research Group and consults with professional sports teams. Her research has helped inform clinical guidelines for treating tendon injuries. To reach Silbernagel directly and arrange and interview, visit her profile and click on the "contact" button. Interested reporters can also send an email to MediaRelations@udel.edu.