Dr Nirav Maniar
Lecturer
Sports Performance, Recovery, Injury and New Technologies (SPRINT) Research Centre
Areas of expertise: knee injury; biomechanics; data analytics and visualisation; musculoskeletal modelling
Phone: +61 03 9953 3030
Email: Nirav.Maniar@acu.edu.au
Location: ACU Melbourne Campus
HDR Supervisor accreditation status: Provisional
ORCID ID: 0000-0002-6180-6003
Dr Nirav Maniar completed a Bachelor of Exercise and Movement Science at Queensland University of Technology in 2014. He subsequently completed his doctoral thesis (PhD) in knee injury biomechanics at ACU in 2018 under the supervision of Dr David Opar. Dr Maniar joined ACU’s School of Behavioural and Health Sciences as a full-time lecturer in 2019.
His research work primarily focuses on the mechanics of lower-limb injury, especially that occurring to the anterior cruciate ligament and the hamstrings. He utilises a range of technologies and methods, including three-dimensional motion capture, musculoskeletal modelling, and data analytics/visualisation.
Select publications
Knee injury research
- Maniar N, Schache AG, Sritharan P, Opar DA. Non-knee-spanning muscles contribute to tibiofemoral shear as well as valgus and rotational joint reaction moments during unanticipated sidestep cutting. Scientific Reports 2018 Feb 6; 8(1):2501. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-19098-9
- Maniar N, Schache AG, Pizzolato C, Opar DA. Muscle contributions to tibiofemoral shear forces and valgus and rotational joint moments during single leg drop landing. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. 2020 Sep; 30(9):1664-1674. doi: 10.1111/sms.13711
- Maniar N, Schache AG, Cole MH, Opar DA. Lower-limb muscle function during sidestep cutting. Journal of Biomechanics. 2019 Jan 3; 82:186-192. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2018.10.021
- Maniar N, Bryant AL, Sritharan P, Schache AG, Opar DA. Muscle contributions to medial and lateral tibiofemoral compressive loads during sidestep cutting. Journal of Biomechanics. 2020 Mar 5; 101:109641. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2020.109641.
Hamstring injury research
- Opar DA, Timmins RG, Behan FP, Hickey JT, van Dyk N, Price K, Maniar N. Is pre-season eccentric strength testing during the Nordic hamstring exercise associated with future hamstring strain injury? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Med. 2021. DOI: 10.1007/s40279-021-01474-1.
- Maniar N, Shield AJ, Williams MD, Timmins RG, Opar DA. Hamstring strength and flexibility after hamstring strain injury: a systematic review and meta-analysis. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 2016 Aug; 50(15):909-20. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2015-095311
- Ruddy JD, Shield AJ, Maniar N, Williams MD, Duhig S, Timmins RG, Hickey J, Bourne MN, Opar DA. Predictive Modeling of Hamstring Strain Injuries in Elite Australian Footballers. Medicine & Science in Sports Exercise. 2018 May; 50(5):906-914. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000001527
- Hickey JT, Timmins RG, Maniar N, Rio E, Hickey PF, Pitcher CA, Williams MD, Opar DA. Pain-Free Versus Pain-Threshold Rehabilitation Following Acute Hamstring Strain Injury: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy. 2019 Jun; 28:1-35. doi: 10.2519/jospt.2019.8895
- Timmins RG, Ruddy JD, Presland J, Maniar N, Shield AJ, Williams MD, Opar DA. Architectural Changes of the Biceps Femoris Long Head after Concentric or Eccentric Training. Medicine & Science in Sports Exercise 2016 Mar; 48(3):499-508. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000000795.
Projects
Select research funding
- The influence of hamstring strain injury rehabilitation on running biomechanics. Faculty of Health Science Early Career Researcher Mentorship Grant.
- Hamstring activation and musculotendinous strain during hamstring exercises and high intensity running. Faculty of Health Sciences Project Grant.
Accolades and awards
Academic awards
- Australian Catholic University Teaching Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning (2018)
- Sports Medicine Australia ASICS Medal Winner (co-author) – Best Paper at Sports Medicine Australia Conference (2017)
- Australian Postgraduate Award. (2015-2017).
Appointments and affiliations
Current and prior consultancy roles
Provided advice on validity/reliability experiments for HumanTrak, a markerless motion capture technology.
