After a successful summer semester, the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute welcomes four new and one returning intern for fall. These students come with excellent qualifications, fresh perspectives and innovative ideas that they will bring to the Institute.
Grace O’Donnell
Grace O’Donnell, a senior Sports Communication major from Allentown, NJ, is the Institute’s writing and editing intern for the fall 2024 semester. In her role, she will interview faculty and students and write meaningful content about sports science research and creative endeavors happening at Clemson.
“I am so excited to work with the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute and help further their mission in any way possible,” O’Donnell said. “I am passionate about bringing real people’s stories to life and constantly finding unique, innovative ways to showcase their accomplishments.”
O’Donnell also serves as the sports editor of The Tiger, Clemson’s student newspaper. There, she oversees a staff of 25 reporters looking to put their personal touch on stories related to Clemson Athletics. Her experience in this role will enable her to dive deeper into each profile, paragraph and sentence for the semester ahead.
Katie Gerbasich
Katie Gerbasich, a sophomore Sports Communication major from Houston, TX, is the Institute’s events and writing assistant for the fall. Throughout the semester, she will help coordinate various events and contribute to the Sports Insight blog.
“I am thrilled to work together with these amazing people and help promote the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute,” Gerbasich said. “This is an opportunity for me to expand my network on campus while gaining valuable work experience. The Institute is already such an incredible community that I look forward to learning more about first-hand.”
Gerbasich previously worked as an intern for the Community Impact Newspaper where she wrote feature articles and experienced a professional newsroom. She hopes to draw on her sports photography experience to help the Institute curate content and increase engagement.
Kyler Blose
Kyler Blose is senior from Lexington, SC and is majoring in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management with an emphasis in Tourism and Event Management. She is the events lead intern for the fall semester and her main focus will be on facilitating the arrangements for the fall symposium (RECESS) and other events.
“I am extremely excited to be hands-on with this team,” Blose said. “The opportunity to build on the experience and skills that I’ve learned over the past three years is huge for me and I cannot wait to see all we accomplish this fall.
This is one of the best kinds of challenges for me, both personally and professionally, and it is a chance for me to put my skills to the test! I’m thrilled to learn more about the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute and how they serve the University and be able to showcase everyone’s hard work.”
This past summer, Blose worked with the City of Easley Parks and Recreation Department as part of her final required internship to gain experience in sports management, community recreation and event planning. She is excited to apply all she has learned to RHBSSI and put on some great events this semester.
Natalie Bell
Natalie Bell is a senior Graphic Communications major and Brand Communications minor from Greenville, SC. She is the Institute’s graphic design intern this semester and will create visual materials to promote Clemson sports science activities.
“I am most excited about dipping my toes into a different side of marketing and learning more about RHBSSI,” Bell said. “I worked for a small marketing agency this past spring, so I look forward to creating graphics and generating ideas for a different market than before.”
When Bell is not living and breathing the Adobe Creative Suite, she enjoys taking film photos, spending time with friends and family outdoors and reading in her free time.
Taylor Erdman
Taylor Erdman is a senior Sports Communication major with a Business Administration minor from Eastchester, NY. Returning from the summer, she will rejoin the Institute as their communications lead, creating content for social media and assisting with the Sports Insight blog.
“As the only returning intern, I am excited to be a role model for my fellow interns and assist them in any way that I can,” Erdman said. “Working for the Institute has been such a rewarding experience and I cannot wait to continue promoting all the amazing opportunities they have to offer. Specifically, I’m looking forward to educating the Clemson community on our fall symposium.”
Erdman plans to use all the skills and information she acquired over the summer in her work for the fall semester. She has also held various roles within the marketing and communication industry that will help her in her current role with the Institute.
Clemson students are heading to Paris, France this month for the Paralympic Games on August 28 as part of a study abroad course lead by two RHBSSI faculty fellows from Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management (PRTM), Skye Arthur-Banning, Ph.D., and Jasmine Townsend, Ph.D.
Arthur-Banning and Townsend pose next to the Olympic/Paralympic Torch in Paris this summer.
Students will earn credit watching games played around the Arc de Triomphe or walking the Champs-Elysees in Paris while learning about sport and culture and seeing talented athletes from around the globe compete. The 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris will see over 4,400 athletes compete in 23 different sports.
Clemson students have been attending the Paralympic Games since 2010. This year, they will attend a variety of sporting events, walk through the Olympic stadium and meet with athletes. They will hear from sport designers and organizers to learn how the games are put on, their importance to the people of Paris and how disability awareness is growing within France and around the world. Students will also take in the rich culture of Paris by visiting the world-famous Louvre Museum and Eiffel Tower and eat some of the finest of French cuisine.
“One goal of the course is to expose students to the Paralympic Games as one of the largest international sporting events in the world,” said Arthur-Banning. “Through this experience, they will understand the planning and details, logistics and more that go into a large-scale sporting event.”
A second aim is to encourage students to think about and see the value of Parasport and appreciate all of the different sporting events, as well as the wide variety of people with disabilities that are able to experience sport. Arthur-Banning and Townsend hope that the students’ worldview will be broadened, and they will become advocates for people with disabilities and the programs that serve them.
This summer, one of the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute’s newest faculty fellows, Felipe Tobar, Ph.D., traveled Europe to continue his long-term project of studying the transmission or suppression of difficult heritage in European soccer grounds. His findings at Real Madrid (Spain) and FC St. Pauli (Germany) will be included in an upcoming research documentary, “The Match That Not Every Club Wants to Play.” He also traveled to his home country, Brazil, to engage in other sport-related tourism and heritage activities.
Spain
To kick off his European research tour, Tobar traveled with the Clemson Women’s Soccer team to Spain for their study abroad trip. As part of their Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management (PRTM) 3500 Global Challenges course about soccer, climate change and sustainability, the team visited four stadiums and three training centers for professional Spanish clubs, including Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Valencia and Atletico Madrid. Tobar and the team watched official matches, toured backstage and even played official friendly matches with the clubs’ first and second teams. At each site, they analyzed and compared how the Spanish soccer clubs were engaged in the ‘green revolution.’
“The cultural and sporting experiences added to the opportunity to meet new people, including staff, students and the organizers. This is something that I will carry forward and soon share in my classroom with new students.”
Felipe Tobar, Ph.D. on his study abroad experience with the Clemson Women’s Soccer team
Germany
After leaving Spain, Tobar traveled to Germany and visited the cities of Frankfurt, Bremen and Hamburg. While there, Tobar engaged in activities related to his upcoming research documentary and a 2025 German study abroad program on football, culture of remembrance, and politics. Some of the incredible experiences Tobar had in Germany included touring Frankfurt and visiting Holocaust memorials and sites related to national socialism, touring the Weser Stadion using Google AI Translator, and checking the new museum exhibition of FC St Pauli on the discovery of a former Jewish player persecuted by the Nazi regime.
“The importance of coming back to Germany after three years since my dissertation data collection to record new footage for my documentary was essential. I confirmed my previous observations and reinforced networking links to bring undergraduate students to Germany next year on a study abroad program. The students will understand better how German society and its soccer clubs have been dealing with the Nazi past.”
Felipe Tobar, Ph.D. on his visit to Germany the summer of 2024
Turkey
The next stop on Tobar’s European excursion was Istanbul, Turkey for a few stadium tours and museum visits.
“Strolling through Istanbul streets and public buildings like the Grand Bazar, you can see a tradition that is part of the city’s cultural and sport heritage after every national championship.”
Felipe Tobar, Ph.D. on his experience in Istanbul, Turkey
He noticed that everywhere he looked, locals were displaying the flag of Galatasaray, the most successful Turkish club in European competitions and the current national champions. Tobar was able to speak with locals to better understand the reasons and history of such a tradition. He also had the opportunity to visit Galatasaray’s home and the clubs that wanted to dismantle Galatasaray’s hegemony.
Tobar’s research agenda on Istanbul’s main soccer clubs started at Fenerbahçe Stadium, where he toured the club museum and researched local fans’ memories linked to former club captain Alex de Souza, who is the only living individual to have a statue in front of the stadium funded and erected entirely by fans.
Tobar later visited Besiktas stadium and its museum observing how this club, alongside the other capital clubs, paid fervent homage to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founding father of the Republic of Turkey. Tobar plans to author another paper seeking to understand the approaches each of these clubs employ when linking their images with what is still considered the most important personality in the history of modern Turkey.
The statue of former captain and club legend, Alex de Souza, in front of Fenerbahçe Stadium in Istanbul, Turkey.
In the façades of Besiktas stadium, the club features its Eagle mascot and a tribute to the 100 years of Turkey’s liberation from British control through images and phrases to honor Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
UEFA EURO 2024
After Istanbul, Tobar traveled back to Germany for UEFA EURO 2024. Throughout the tournament, he traveled to several host cities to engage in two main lines of research: the ‘German Football Culture of Remembrance’, and how the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) and its partners communicate sustainability efforts to football tourists and locals. Alongside his first line of research, the DFB Cultural Foundation (German Football Federation), in collaboration with the World Jewish Congress and What Matters, introduced the “Football and Remembrance” program aimed at addressing the history of national socialism. Various memorials, places of remembrance and museums across the nation, particularly near the ten host cities, participated in several special events.
Tobar was able to visit the following sites and talk to various experts:
Munich – Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site – Football in the Dachau concentration camp | Tour
Cologne – NS-Documentation Centre of the City of Cologne
Hamburg – Foundation of Hamburg Memorials and Learning Centres Commemorating the Victims of Nazi Crimes – Stories of Persecution during National Socialism and the HSV | Tour
Foundation of Hamburg Memorials and Learning Centres Commemorating the Victims of Nazi Crimes – Football in concentration camps | Tour
Bergen-Belsen Memorial – Who against whom? Football under National Socialism | Workshop
Büren-Wewelsburg – Memorial Museum Wewelsburg – More than just a game – football under National Socialism | Exhibition
Football Under the Nazis’ “Sports. Crowds. Power.” | Exhibition
In addition to visiting these sites, Tobar also had the
opportunity to visit the museums and representatives of Borussia Dortmund,
Bayer Leverkusen, and Bayern Munich, as well as the German Football Museum and
the German Olympic Museum. To learn more about his time in Dortmund, click here.
Tobar was also invited by the Red Against Racism initiative from Bayern Munich to visit the club’s headquarters and learn more about their project to tackle antisemitism and other discriminatory practices within German football stadiums and society. Still in Munich, Tobar visited a representative from the Kurt Landauer Foundation named after the former Jewish president, Bayern Munich, persecuted by the Nazis.
“Out of Germany, I intend to share these clubs’ experiences and ways of revisiting (or not) the past with different audiences and societies that often struggle to face their respective histories. Apart from making these stories more accessible as they will be written in English, the book can serve as a meaningful and powerful vehicle of reflection to other traumatic societies on how to come to terms with difficult pasts and potentially promote collective healing”.
Felipe Tobar, Ph.D., on the focus of his research in Germany
Strong messages were featured at Football Under the Nazis’ “Sports. Crowds. Power.” exhibition near Olympiastadion in Berlin reminding that ‘football is never neutral’ and that ‘people choose their actions’ during the Nazi regime.
Tour guides from Hamburg, Germany’s HSV Fan Projekt sharing the stories of persecution during national socialism.
UEFA EURO 2024’s sponsor, Chinese BYD’s electrical manufacturing company, stands at the UEFA EURO FAN FEST in Cologne.
Scotland
Tobar takes a picture of the plaque commemorating the home of Scottish (and, arguably, world) football. Credit: Glasgow Football Tour.
After Germany, Tobar traveled to Scotland for the Leisure Sciences Association Congress hosted by the University of West Scotland. At the conference, Tobar toured the Scottish National Football Museum and the national stadium, Hampden Park. He investigated the tour’s narrative and organization for future studies, and focused on understanding and cataloging how women’s football was depicted in the museum exhibitions. On the last day of his academic trip to Scotland, Tobar experienced the ‘Glasgow Football Tour’ which challenges the authorized heritage discourse from FIFA on who and when association football was invented, and who created the ‘passing game’ known today as ‘tik-taka,’ among other historical anecdotes.
Brazil
Before returning to Clemson, Tobar stopped in Brazil, his home country. Apart from following Grêmio Football Porto-Alegrense in two matches of the Brazilian Cup, in different cities and stadiums, as a sport tourist (just as he teaches in his ‘Sport Tourism and Events’ course in Clemson’s PRTM Department), Tobar visited the Brazilian National Football Museum located at the Pacaembu Stadium. This was once considered a historical landmark in the city of Sao Paulo. There, Tobar analyzed how the museum now remembers the image of the best soccer player of all time, Pelé, who was also responsible for popularizing the sport in the U.S. in the late 1970s. Tobar also dedicated special attention to the promotion and interpretation of women’s football within the museum displays, which will be incorporated in a future publication comparing how the three national football museums he visited during the summer – German, Scottish and Brazilian – promote women’s football.
Marta, the world’s most acclaimed women’s football player, is highly revered across the museum displays.
A match between Grêmio and Corinthians, Copa do Brasil, Aug. 7, 2024.
“Having the opportunity to spend a few weeks in Brazil and engage in sport-related tourism and heritage research activities at such a relevant museum has been extremely rewarding. Also, participating in football matches and living fans’ passion for the number one sport in the country was a much-needed nostalgic experience.”
Felipe Tobar, Ph.D., on his experiences in Brazil
Up Next
Tobar was recently awarded a seed grant by RHBSSI to study more effective and inclusive VR soccer experiences. His research is kicking off this fall semester and he is currently recruiting Clemson students to join a Creative Inquiry course. Students will develop real-world skills relevant to their major, likely from PRTM, Bioengineering, Math or Computer Science. Furthermore, they will be active in helping create the experimental protocols and survey tools, collecting data during research sessions and analyzing results for the project.
To enroll, select one of the following course options in iROAR:
PRTM 3980, 002 (CRN 92089),
PRTM 3981, 002 (CRN 92090)
BIOE 4510 (Sec 051): CI-Sports Science EEG & VR
To learn more about Felipe Tobar’s research and European adventures, follow him on LinkedIn or contact him at ftobar@clemson.edu.
