Barry University is making international headlines in the world of sport and exercise science, thanks to groundbreaking research led by faculty and students in our Human Performance Laboratory.

Dr. Zacharias Papadakis, alongside his students, played a critical role in the first-ever large-scale replication project in the field—an effort that’s now being recognized in Sports Medicine, one of the world’s top academic journals with an impact factor of 9.4.

This landmark project tackled one of the most pressing challenges in science today: the replication crisis—a growing concern that many foundational studies fail to produce the same results when repeated. The findings? Eye-opening. Only 28% of the studies tested could be successfully replicated, and their effect sizes dropped by a median of 75%. The implications for the field are massive, and Barry University is helping to lead the call for greater scientific transparency and rigor.

One of the standout publications from this project, “Estimating the Replicability of Sports and Exercise Science,” features Barry undergraduate and graduate students as co-authors, a rare and transformative opportunity for students at any university. One of them, Sam Norwood, originally came to Barry from another institution, FIU, specifically for the chance to work in this lab. He’s now pursuing his PhD at The University of Kansas.

The work was made possible by a two-year, fully funded research grant secured through the Irish Research Council. Dr. Papadakis’ commitment to mentoring and advocating for student authorship ensured these emerging scholars gained invaluable experience conducting world-class research, from design and data collection to publication in a premier journal.

This achievement isn’t just about accolades, it’s about impact. It shows how Barry is creating a scalable model for advancing high-quality research while giving students access to real-world, high-impact academic opportunities.

Dr. Papadakis notes that this is only the beginning: “By strategically pursuing external funding, building global collaborations, and fully integrating students into every stage of the research process, we’re creating a blueprint for what research excellence at Barry can look like.”

This is the kind of mentorship, experience, and innovation that sets Barry apart, and it’s shaping the next generation of leaders in sport and exercise science.