Research into cycling performance put CQU's Ben Dascombe within a point of winning the 'Young Investigator of the Year' Award at a peak industry conference recently.

The Rockhampton-based PhD candidate within the School of Health and Human Performance recently made the final of the award at the Australian Association for Exercise and Sports Science Conference held at the University of NSW from September 28-October 1.

Mr Dascombe presented a paper titled 'Comparison of the oxygen uptake and muscle oxygenation slow components during high intensity cycling in well-trained young and veteran cyclists'.

The data he presented was taken from his recently submitted PhD thesis and was one of 4 papers he was involved with at the conference.

The paper was a collaboration between researchers from the University of Technology, Sydney and the University of the Sunshine Coast.

CQU Associate Professor Peter Reaburn said Mr Dascombe missed winning the $2500 travel bursary by only one point.

Mr Dascombe has also been in the news recently for his research into the actual performance benefits of compression tights, building on other studies showing they have physical benefits.

The CQU study is the first in Australia to use a Near Infra-Red Spectroscopy (NIRS) device to examine the consumption of oxygen within the thigh muscles of athletes wearing the tights.

Mr Dascombe has Queensland Academy of Sport grant funding and garments supplied by Skins and has started testing cyclists (with and without tights) in Rockhampton.

He said the NIRS device uses 2 wavelengths which correspond to hemoglobin with and without oxygen attached.

Photo (above): PhD candidate Ben Dascombe is congratulated by Associate Professor Peter Reaburn, Head of the School of Health and Human Performance.

Photo (below): Queensland Academy of Sport supported cyclist Josh Edwards contributes to the testing.