Movement is fundamental to human life: it supports everyday function, contributes to health, and enables performance in sport.
Our research investigates human movement at the interface of sport science, motor control and biomechanics. We study how movement emerges from the interplay between the nervous system and the musculoskeletal system, and how humans learn, adapt, and optimize motor behavior.
We focus on the control and biomechanics of movement, the effects of practice and assistive technologies, and methods for performance diagnostics. Across these areas, our goal is to understand how movement can be assessed, supported, and improved in everyday life, sport, prevention, and rehabilitation.
Our work addresses fundamental questions in motor control, including modularity, stability, and variability in human movement. In motor learning, we investigate how modular control changes with practice and how variable practice protocols can promote learning. Building on this foundation, we study human-technology interaction in applications such as running shoes, orthoses, and exoskeletons. We also develop approaches for predicting internal biomechanical states using wearables and machine learning, and apply performance diagnostics in high-performance sport.
Methodologically, we combine experimental and computational approaches from sport science, physiology, mechanics, control theory, machine learning, and robotics. This interdisciplinary perspective allows us to identify principles underlying human movement and translate them into practical applications. Our scientific work is complemented by practical experience in various sports.
At the Institute of Sports and Sports Science, we represent the natural and engineering sciences in sport, including motor control, biomechanics, sports informatics, and engineering. Our research is embedded in the broader structures of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology through our involvement in the KIT Centers “Information · Systems · Technologies” and “Health Technologies”.
As part of an international team, Dr. Gunther Kurz published the article „Decreased change of direction angle, increased ACL load: angle-dependent anterior cruciate ligament loading across different change of direction sprints in male soccer players”.
To the articleDr. Cagla Kettner has published an article titled „Ankle exoskeleton assistance increases task-relevant variability without altering center of mass control during walking”.
To the articleDr. Cagla Kettner has published a systematic review titled “The Effects of Shoe Sole Thickness on Running Biomechanics and Economy: A Systematic Review.”
To the articleWe warmly congratulate Hannah Steingrebe on successfully defending her dissertation!
Hannah Steingrebe has published an article titled “Effect of hip bracing on stair-walking biomechanics and pain in patients with mild-to-moderate hip osteoarthritis: an intervention study.”
Dr. Cagla Kettner has successfully secured a DFG postdoctoral fellowship under the Walter Benjamin Program – Congratulations!