Miquel Torregrossa, new director of the Institut de Recerca de l'Esport de la UAB
On March 5, 2026, the Institute Council elected Psychology Professor Miquel Torregrossa Álvarez as the new director of the Institute for Sports Research of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (IRE-UAB) for a six-year term. Torregrossa succeeds Professor Emilio Fernández Peña, who has served as director since 2020
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Miquel Torregrossa ensures the continuity of IRE's commitment to high-quality research and international projection
The new management team includes: Anna Tous (Secretary and Deputy Director of Research), Maria Prat (Deputy Director of PhD and Third Cycle Training), Eva Parrado (Deputy Director of Wellbeing), Emilio Fernández (Deputy Director of Olympic Studies), Iliana Ferrer (Deputy Director of Communication), Marta Borrueco (Deputy Director of Career Development), and Berta Cerezuela (Managing Technician).
Miquel Torregrossa holds a PhD in Psychology, a Master's in Sports Psychology, and is a Professor of Sports Psychology at the Department of Basic, Developmental, and Educational Psychology at UAB. He leads the Sport and Exercise Psychology Research Group (GEPE-UAB), which researches sports career development from a holistic perspective of the athlete as a person and within their environments.
The new director assumes this responsibility with the aim of enhancing multidisciplinarity among research groups, promoting and providing visibility to research at both national and international levels, and facilitating the career development of research staff.
Since the creation of IRE-UAB six years ago, Emilio Fernández Peña has led the Institute as its founding director, transforming an emerging project into an integrating space for research and training in Sports Sciences at UAB, with a clear international vocation.
This new phase also aims to strengthen ties with research staff and doctoral students, promoting a collaborative work environment that boosts young talent and internationalization. Miquel Torregrossa’s leadership is committed to consolidating IRE-UAB as an open space where Sports Sciences meet social innovation, ensuring the continuity of the Institute's commitment to high-level research and advanced training in Sports Sciences at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.