Cláudia Sofia Ferreira Correia Minderico
Cláudia Minderico is a research fellow of CIPER. She holds a Bachelor degree in Physical Education and Sport from Faculty of Human Kinetics, a Bachelor degree in Nutrition Sciences from the Higher Institute of Health Sciences – Egas Moniz, a Master degree in Clinical Nutrition from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, and a PhD in Physical Fitness and Health in the specialty of Body Composition by the Faculty of Human Kinetics. Her main research areas of interest are the investigation in clinical nutrition in health, body composition and athletic performance of high-performance athletes and recreation practitioners, clinical nutrition in healthy growth, development and aging, clinical nutrition in the prevention and therapy of specific pathologies, and nutritional prescription in programs of control and management of the weight. She is author of several pedagogical and scientific articles in the field of Clinical Nutrition, Sports Nutrition and Body Composition and Invited lecturer of several master’s and post-graduate courses in the field of Sports Nutrition. Currently she is in charge of the nutrition service of the Portuguese Olympic Committee.
Analiza Monica Lopes Almeida Silva
Analiza M. Silva is a Full Professor and Head of the Exercise and Health Laboratory at the Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon. She has published over 300 peer-reviewed articles and has been an investigator and PI in national and international projects. Her work appears in high-impact journals, including Science, Nature Metabolism, Nature Food, and the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Research interests include the development and validation of body composition and energy balance methods; hydration dynamics in health and performance; and energy balance regulation in response to exercise programs and weight-loss interventions in metabolic disorders and athletic populations. She coordinates the BIA International Database, a global initiative aimed at enabling large-scale integration of body composition data for clinical, public health, and research applications. Her research spans mechanisms, clinical trials, and translation into practice, contributing to advances in obesity, exercise physiology, hydration science, and methodological innovations. Stanford University has identified her among the top 2% of researchers worldwide across all scientific areas. Her expertise is widely recognized, fostering frequent collaborations with leading research institutions worldwide, including her appointment as Adjunct Faculty at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center.
Veronica Elisabeth Vleck
Veronica Vleck did her PhD on training and injury in Elite triathletes and is currently a full-time Research Fellow, funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology. She has extensive University and international lecturing experience in sports and exercise physiology and psychology, and is a former Laboratory Director of the National Sports Medicine Institute of the UK. She has over twenty years of experience in coaching and/or providing sports science support to all levels of athlete, from novices through to World Age Group Champions, National Squads and Olympic medallists.
Maria Isabel Caldas Januário Fragoso
Associate professor of the Department of Sport and Health Sciences, Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon. Member of the Laboratory of Exercise Physiology and Biochemistry, and CIPER, funded by FCT. During the last 8 years Professor Fragoso was largely involved in high-level athletes' evaluation and consulting, with regular contracts with national sports federations and with the Portuguese Sports Institute. Fragoso’s main research activity is focused on anthropometric maturation and performance.
Gonçalo Laima Vilhena de Mendonça
He concluded a 5 yr graduation in Special Education and Rehabilitation in 2004. Then, in 2007, he completed a Post-Graduate program in Neurosciences at the Faculty of Medicine/University of Lisbon. In 2008 he obtained a Master degree in Physiotherapy and concluded a PhD in Human Kinetics in 2012 (Faculty of Human Kinetics/Technical University of Lisbon). He is an ACSM certified Exercise Physiologist since 2006 and has supervised Cardiac Rehabilitation interventions for a period of 4 yrs. Additionally, he directed a phase III/IV Cardiac Rehabilitation program from 2005-2007. In parallel, he coordinated the APPACDM-Ajuda Adapted Physical Activity program for adults with Down syndrome from 2004-2012. In 2008 he was awarded with the prize of young researcher of the year in the domain of Human Kinetics (Young Researchers Lisbon Technical University/Delloit) and with an honorary mention for senior researcher in Human Kinetics (Senior Researchers Lisbon Technical University/Santander Totta). Presently, his research interests focus on the cardiorespiratory, autonomic adaptations to exercise and resistance training with vascular restriction. He has published several scientific papers in international peer reviewed journals with impact factor. Finally, he has also served as a reviewer for many well respected journals in the field of Sports Medicine, Applied Physiology and Neurophysiology.