Dr Grant Tomkinson

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For as long as I can remember, I have been keen on sport. I was constantly playing sport as a child, either formally with a sporting club, or informally with small groups of friends. I considered myself somewhat of an athlete when I was younger, and at my best, I competed at the national level in athletics.

It was this interest in sport which led me to where I am now. After finishing high school in 1994, I completed a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Science (Exercise Science) at UNSW between 1995 and 1997. Moving to South Australia in 1998, I completed my Honours Degree in Applied Science (Human Movement) at UniSA, and then my PhD in Human Movement. For my PhD, I examined secular trends in the fitness test performance of Australasian children and adolescents. My main areas of research are pediatric exercise science, sports science and anthropometry.

Chance favours the prepared mind
Louis Pasteur

• Pediatric exercise science
• Exercise physiology, programming and prescription
• Anthropometry

International Society for the Advancement of Kinanthropometry

European College of Sport Science

Australian Society for Medical Research

Healthy Development Adelaide

BSpSc (UNSW)

BAppSc(Hons) (UniSA)

PhD (UniSA)

• Pediatrics: secular trends and geographic variability in fitness, fatness and physical activity
• 
• Anthropometry: bilateral symmetry, body image, performance correlates and 3D anthropometry
• 

Tomkinson, G.R. (2009).
The evolution of pediatric fitness test performance.
In T. Jürimäe, N. Armstrong & J. Jürimäe (Eds.), Children and Exercise XXIV: The Proceedings of the 24th Pediatric Work Physiology Meeting (pp. 32-37).
London: Routledge.

Tomkinson, G.R., & Olds, T.S. (2008).
Field tests of fitness.
In N. Armstrong & W. Van Mechelen (Eds.), Paediatric exercise science and medicine (pp. 109-128) (2nd ed).
Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Olds, T.S., & Tomkinson, G.R. (2008).
Absolute body size.
In T.R. Ackland, B.C. Elliott & J. Bloomfield (Eds.), Building a champion athlete: Applied anatomy and biomechanics in sport (pp. 29-46) (2nd ed.).
Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Tomkinson, G.R., & Shaw, L.G. (2008).
An anthropometric method of measuring standing posture with 3D analysis.
In M. Marfell-Jones & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Kinanthropometry X, (pp. 55-77).
London: Routledge.

Tomkinson, G.R. (2007).
Global changes in anaerobic fitness test performance of children and adolescents (1958-2003).
Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 17, 497-507.

Olds, T., Tomkinson, G., & Dollman, J. (2007).
Secular trends in the skinfold thicknesses of young people in developed countries.
Journal of Human Ecology, 15, 41-49.

Tomkinson, G.R., Olds, T.S., Kang, S.J., & Kim, D.Y. (2007).
Secular trends in the aerobic fitness test performance and Body Mass Index of Korean children and adolescents (1968-2000).
International Journal of Sports Medicine, 28, 314-320.

Tomkinson, G.R., & Olds, T.S. (2007) (Eds).
Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Tomkinson, G.R., & Olds, T.S. (2007).
Secular changes in pediatric aerobic fitness test performance: The global picture.
In G.R. Tomkinson & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability, (pp. 46-66) (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Tomkinson, G.R., Olds, T.S., & Borms, J. (2007).
Who are the Eurofittest?
In G.R. Tomkinson & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability, (pp. 104-128) (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Jürimäe, T., Volbekiene, V., Jürimäe, J., & Tomkinson, G.R. (2007).
Changes in Eurofit test performance of Estonian and Lithuanian children and adolescents (1992-2002).
In G.R. Tomkinson & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability, (pp. 129-142) (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Macfarlane, D.J., & Tomkinson, G.R. (2007).
The evolution and variability in fitness test performance of Asian children and adolescents.
In G.R. Tomkinson & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability, (pp. 143-167) (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Tomkinson, G.R., & Olds, T.S. (2007).
Secular changes in aerobic fitness test performance of Australasian children and adolescents.
In G.R. Tomkinson & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability, (pp. 168-182) (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Olds, T.S., Ridley, K., & Tomkinson, G.R. (2007).
Declines in aerobic fitness: Are they only due to increasing fatness?
In G.R. Tomkinson & T.S. Olds (Eds.), Pediatric fitness: Secular trends and geographic variability, (pp. 226-240) (vol. 50, Medicine and Sport Science Series).
Basel: Karger.

Tomkinson, G.R., Hamlin, M.J., & Olds, T.S. (2006).
Secular trends in anaerobic test performance in Australasian children and adolescents.
Pediatric Exercise Science, 18, 314-328.

Olds, T.S., Tomkinson, G.R., Léger, L.A., & Cazorla, G. (2006).
Worldwide variation in the performance of children and adolescents: An analysis of 109 studies of the 20 m shuttle run test in 37 countries.
Journal of Sports Sciences, 24, 1025-1038.

Tomkinson, G.R., Léger, L.A., Olds, T.S., & Cazorla, G. (2003).
Secular trends in the performance of children and adolescents (1980-2000): An analysis of 55 studies of the 20 m shuttle run in 11 countries.
Sports Medicine, 33, 285-300.

Tomkinson, G.R., Olds, T.S., & Gulbin, J. (2003).
Secular trends in physical performance of Australian children: Evidence from the Talent Search program.
Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 43, 90-98.

Tomkinson, G.R., Popovic, N., & Martin, M. (2003).
Bilateral symmetry and the competitive standard attained in elite and sub-elite sport.
Journal of Sports Sciences, 21, 201-211.

Olds, T.S., Tomkinson, G.R., & Baker, S. (2003).
Fitness differentials amongst schools: How are they related to school sector?
Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 6, 313-327.

Olds, T.S., & Tomkinson, G.R. (2003).
The aerobic fitness of 9-15 year old South Australian children: Norms, trends and international comparisons.
ACHPER Healthy Lifestyles Journal, 50(3-4), 25-30.

I am able to provide media comment in the following areas of expertise:

Discipline: Exercise Science

• Pediatrics: secular trends and geographic variability of fitness, fatness and physical activity
• Exercise: programming, prescription, testing and trends
• Anthropometry: 3D anthropometry, bilateral symmetry and performance correlates