AUSTIN, Texas—Dr. Mel Williams, an internationally recognized expert on performance enhancement in sports, will deliver this year’s 23rd Annual Alderson Lecture at 7 p.m., March 25 in the Thompson Conference Center, room 1.110.
The lecture, entitled “What Price Victory? Ergogenic Aids and Performance in Sport,” is sponsored by the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education and the College of Education at The University of Texas at Austin.
Williams, considered by many scholars to be the “godfather” of sports supplement research, is the founder of the Human Performance Laboratory at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., and has spent more than 30 years researching sports ergogenics. He has published more than 60 original research studies and reviews and authored six books on the application of nutritional, pharmacological, psychological and physiological aids in sports.
“The Ergogenics Edge,” Williams’ most recent book, rates more than 60 sports ergogenics, weighing the legality, safety and efficacy of each aid along with identifying the aids that best enhance performance in each major sport and ethical issues that may surround the use of certain aids.
At 66, Williams has run 112 marathons, competing in three or four a year and including all 29 Marine Corps Marathons in Washington, D.C. He has won the Boston Marathon three times, once in age group 50-59 and twice in age group 60-69. Williams has continued to participate in triathlons into his 60s and trains each week by running between 50 and 70 miles.
The Alderson Lecture is presented each year in honor of the late Dr. C.J. (Shorty) Alderson and the late Dr. Mary Buice Alderson, who were faculty members in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education. The lecture is dedicated to undergraduate professional development and recognizes the positive contributions of the Aldersons during their combined 85 years of teaching and research in the area of health education.
For more information contact: Cindy Mills, 512-471-1273, or Dr. Jan Todd, 512-471-4890.
