China’s women’s boxing team visits UHCL’s high-performance institute

February 20, 2019 | Jim Townsend

Five members of China’s national women’s boxing team, each hoping to represent their country in the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Tokyo, visited University of Houston-Clear Lake’s Exercise and Nutritional Health Institute on Feb. 6 for scientific testing of their neuromuscular, somatosensory and vestibular systems.

The boxers spent much of January in Olympic facilities in Colorado and at sparring and strength and conditioning facilities in Houston. The biomechanics and motor control laboratories in UH-Clear Lake’s new Recreation and Wellness Center were their last stops before heading home.

The labs’ equipment analyzes strength, power, mobility, endurance, how well the brain incorporates visual and somatosensory information for balance, among a variety of other performance related measures. “We study many different physiologic and mechanical aspects of performance to identify deficits, so that the boxer’s coaches can be more precise in their exercise prescription,” said William Amonette, associate professor of exercise and health sciences and executive director of the institute. “This testing is incredibly important not only for elite athletes but for patients who are trying to improve their overall health and quality of life.”

Leif Rogers, CEO of Red Phoenix Entertainment, and high-performance coach Jay Sutaria facilitated the testing with ENHI. Amonette has ties to China’s athletes, having served previously as a strength and conditioning coach for the men’s national basketball team in preparation for the 2006 International Basketball Federation world championship in Beijing.

Visit the Exercise and Nutritional Health Institute online.