Home to the legendary All Blacks and a global reputation for sporting brilliance, New Zealand recently connected with the North-West University (NWU) over a shared drive to push the limits in high-performance sport and sports science.
Prof Michael Hamlin and Peter Magson visited the NWU to explore opportunities for collaboration in sports science and high-performance sport, and left thoroughly impressed. During their time on the Potchefstroom Campus, they met with NWU academics and staff involved in sport bursaries, toured the High-Performance Institute and Centre for Health and Human Performance facilities, and delivered a guest lecture that sparked conversation across faculties.
Prof Hamlin’s talk, titled “Instrumented mouthguards and how we can use them to make rugby safer”, captured the attention of students and staff. The lecture formed part of the university’s growing “Brain Health and Concussion” initiative, which Prof Hans de Ridder from the School of Human and Movement Sciences is currently championing.
The visit wasn’t just about facilities and frameworks. It was also about people – and connecting those with shared values and ideas. The delegation’s meeting with NWU vice-chancellor Prof. Bismark Tyobeka, opened a dynamic discussion about student and staff exchanges, rugby scholarships, and how both institutions can work together to improve research and teaching in the field of sport and physical activity.
“This kind of partnership is exactly what we want to see more of,” said Dr Shernice Soobramoney, director for strategic global partnerships. “It’s practical, it’s mutually beneficial, and it opens doors for our students.”
The visit supports the NWU’s drive to strengthen its global footprint, especially through South-South partnerships with institutions like Lincoln University – a globally respected name in applied sciences and sport research. The collaboration will include joint research projects, exchange programmes, and shared teaching in undergraduate and postgraduate courses.
Behind the scenes, the NWU Strategic Global Partnerships office played a key role in making it all happen. Following a meeting in early 2024 with Lincoln University’s international manager, Sarah Cook, it led to a few virtual meeting sessions and the eventual arrangement of the visit in collaboration with Prof De Ridder.
This is just the beginning - a formal Memorandum of Understanding between the two universities is currently being finalised, and a visit by the NWU vice-chancellor’s delegation to New Zealand is planned for November 2025.
