Only 27% of martial artists are female.
70% of martial artists stop training between the ages of 16 and 55.
There are 0 national criteria for martial arts coaching qualification. In most cases, a blackbelt alone is enough.
We want to create a safer and more inclusive recreational sport for people across a lifetime, by reducing the risk of preventable injuries, increasing female participation and leadership, and developing a culture of innovation and professionalism.
Are you interested in researching women’s experiences in martial arts and combat sports? Are you looking for a fully funded PhD studentship? Would you like to work with members of our kick-ass team and British Taekwondo? Then look no further! Find project and application details on the link below.
Help us learn more about women’s experiences of warm-ups in martial arts clubs and develop better resources for recreational coaches. Contact a member of our research team via the button below to share your experiences in an interview.
We are a consortium of researchers, martial artists and industry leaders who aim to use scientific research methods to support safer, more inclusive recreational sport for people across a lifetime. Our expertise ranges from health science to sociology, from physiotherapy to athletic wear.
This initiative first started with a conversation between Open University lecturer (and Taekwondo instructor) Wendi Bacon and physiotherapy clinical lead Rowan Wilson. They realised the warm-up practices in martial arts training often did not align with modern physiotherapy knowledge. If they could apply modern knowledge in this traditional field, could they improve martial arts? Thus, Better Martial Arts was born. Since its inception in 2021, the consortium has received numerous grants from the Open University, the Higher Education Innovation Fund, and the Private Physiotherapy Education Foundation.
