Research Grants/Awards

Amount: $5,000

The ACSM Foundation Doctoral Student Research Grant funds up to $5,000 to cover basic and applied research by doctoral students. Funding can be used for experimental subjects, supplies and small equipment needs. Applications related to Exercise is Medicine® are encouraged. 

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Amount: $10,000

Carl V. Gisolfi, Ph.D., FACSM, was one of the most influential leaders of ACSM in its 50+ year history. With Gatorade, ACSM created the Gisolfi Memorial Fund to honor his many contributions to the college and to the exercise science field. This grant is designed to encourage research in thermoregulation, exercise and hydration. 

In support of the mission to increase diversity at ACSM, special consideration will be given to minority applicants and proposals addressing minority health issues. 

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Amount: $5,000

The Clinical Sports Medicine Endowment funds research directly related to clinical sports medicine. The purpose of the award is to stimulate: 

1. Clinical research in sports medicine derived from active care of athletes, such as prevention strategies, treatment protocols or treatment outcomes, and 

2. Research in clinical sports medicine directly related to issues of active care of athletes, such as pathogenesis, pathophysiology, biomechanics or environmental issues. 

The active patient care must be provided to recreational, competitive or elite athletes. Grant applications must demonstrate the study’s direct relationship with one of these purposes. 

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Amount: $5,000

The Dr. Raymond A. Weiss Research Endowment was established by the late Drs. Raymond and Rosalee Weiss to advance research into the health benefits — physical, mental and emotional — of physical activity and sports. This grant will fund applied research, with the intent of applying the results to programs involving physical activity and sports. The psychological and emotional benefits of physical activity are of particular importance to the endowment’s benefactors, and proposals addressing those issues will be given priority. 

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Amount: $10,000

Dr. Ralph S. Paffenbarger Jr., a co-recipient of the first Olympic Prize in Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, made an extraordinarily generous gift by donating his share of the award to ACSM. This grant is to encourage researchers early in their career to become involved with physical activity epidemiology. Applications may focus on observational studies of physical activity and health outcomes, or on randomized controlled trials that are clearly focused on physical activity and important public health issues. 

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Amount: $10,000

The Research Endowment has been made possible by charitable funds and individual donations. This grant will fund mechanistic, hypothesis-driven basic and applied research in all relevant fields of exercise science. The intent of this grant to provide seed money support, after which further funding would be sought from other sources. Applications should clearly describe whether the aims are achieved in the pilot and how the data will be used in future grant applications. 

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Amount: $5,000

This grant is funded by the World Athletics Federation, one of the most influential sport governing bodies, having great involvement in the Olympics and the creation of its own global events, such as the century-old World Athletics Championship. 

This grant funds human research in the area of physical activity, training and human performance relative to athletic events (e.g., track and field, road running, trail running, race walking). Besides increasing knowledge, the proposal should have a practical impact on all those who regularly participate in athletics, both for competition purposes and simply to enhance their health. 

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Amount: $10,000

This grant is funded by Xero Shoes, which specializes in lightweight minimalist footwear for walking, running and athletics.

This grant will be designated for human research on the impacts of minimalist footwear on biomechanics, performance, injury and physical activity across the lifespan. 

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