Associate Lecturer (Teaching Fellow) Bridgette O’Malley completed her undergraduate degree (B.Clin.Ex.Phys) and postgraduate degree (MPhil) at the Queensland University of Technology. She is in the final year of her doctoral studies, also at QUT, where her research focuses on exploring the mechanistic and physiological causes of differing oxygen uptake dynamics during incremental exercise.
In addition to her doctoral research, Bridgette co-founded the Motorsport Research Group, a collaborative initiative between the Queensland University of Technology and the University of the Sunshine Coast. This group actively partners with industry stakeholders including Motorsport Australia, Hintsa Performance, Supercheap Auto, and the FIA Girls on Track initiative. The group not only aims to advance driver performance, safety, and wellbeing, but also to increase women’s participation and engagement in STEM and motorsport.
Her research program aims to explore both the physiological and mechanistic causes of varied oxygen uptake responses during maximal testing. Using advanced modelling and innovative methodological approaches, she is investigating how ventilation, sex-based differences, and methodological processing influence the interpretation of VO₂max and exercise performance outcomes. Through this work, she seeks to refine exercise testing protocols and translate findings into improved athlete prescription and clinical practice.
Bridgette has held continuous academic appointments at the University of the Sunshine Coast since 2021, teaching across the fields of exercise physiology, sport science, and bioscience. She is also an Accredited Exercise Scientist and Clinical Exercise Physiologist, holding professional recognition through Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA).
Bridgette’s teaching and research interests span exercise physiology, applied sport science, and performance testing, with a particular expertise in VO₂max testing and data interpretation.
Professional memberships
- Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA)
- Accredited Exercise Physiologist, (AEP), ESSA
- Accredited Exercise Scientist (AES), ESSA
Awards and fellowships
- Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA), 2023
- Learning and Teaching Excellence for LFS103, UniSC, 2023
- Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Stipend (Domestic), 2020 - current
- Faculty of Health Excellence Top-Up Scholarship, 2022 - current
Professional social media
Research links
Research areas
- oxygen uptake dynamics during incremental exercise
- methodological optimisation of exercise testing
- optimisation of athlete performance