Judges
COMING SOON: The ESSNawards 2023
The European Specialist Sports Nutrition Awards (ESSNawards) – Europe’s premier sports and active nutrition ceremony – is returning in 2023!
If you are interested in judging this year’s awards, please get in touch at info@essnawards.com.
You can read more about our robust judging process below.
Independent and fair
The ESSNawards judges process is extremely robust and ensures a fair competition. The judges for each category look to make an assessment based on the following elements:
- Impact and innovation – Demonstrates significant, positive, tangible impact to the industry.
- Efficiency – Adheres to the requirement of delivering an efficient operation, demonstrating how this has been achieved.
- Consumer engagement – Takes consumer needs into account and acts as a voice of the customer.
- Commercially aware – Recognises and contributes to the success of the business by acting responsively to commercial needs.
- Process improvement – Ability to demonstrate a structured approach to improving processes.
- Compliance – Demonstrates has the right set of controls and measures in place.
Our ESSNawards 2022 judges can be found below.
MEET THE JUDGES

Sarah-Jane Hodson

Sarah-Jane Hodson
Senior Category Manager of Sports Nutrition at Holland & Barrett
SJ joined Holland and Barrett in 2021, and is Senior Category Manager, leading the category buying team for Sports Nutrition and Nutritionally Complete Food.
Holland and Barrett are an international wellness retailer, and proudly offer the UK’s leading in-store specialist Sports nutrition ranges, with colleagues on hand to offer personalised advice.
As part of SJ’s role, she loves trying the prospective new ranges that her team is working on. SJ has extensive experience in managing wellness and wearable tech categories, including previous roles at Boots, Lloyds Pharmacy and Maplin.
SJ is a big advocate of sport and movement for all and can be found at parkrun most weekends, marshalling enthusiastically.

Nick Morgan

Nick Morgan
Nick works closely with companies in sport, active and lifestyle nutrition regarding their approach to innovation. Nick began his career as an exercise physiologist in elite sport before working at GSK and then subsequently establishing his own company in 2010. Nick’s primary focus is on how our understanding of science, the consumer, and the market integrates to underpin business strategy and innovation.

Jasmine Campbell

Jasmine Campbell
Sport and Exercise Nutritionist (SENr)
Jasmine is registered as a Sport and Exercise Nutritionist (SENr). While she originally completed both an undergraduate and master’s degree in applied sport science she furthered her career with a postgraduate diploma in sports nutrition. Since then she has worked and led nutrition services in Professional Men’s Football, National Governing Bodies, and on the Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme. Jasmine enjoys working with both senior and junior athletes and has across a range of sports such as rowing, swimming, football, and motorsports. She has also been a tutor and lecturer in sports nutrition alongside her consultancy.
Currently a professional doctorate candidate at Liverpool John Moores University in nutrition practices in motorsport, she is also passionate about evidence-based practice and safe supplement use in sports.
@campbelljas

Andrew Steele

Andrew Steele
Andrew Steele is a retired Olympic athlete and a digital health technology entrepreneur working as Chief Product Officer for Prenetics EMEA.
Having competed internationally for 15 years, Andrew was one of the most experienced athletes on Team GB, being part of national teams at European, Commonwealth, World, and Olympic levels. In an unusual turn of events, nine years after competing at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, Andrew was awarded an Olympic medal for the 4x400m relay when the Russian team who finished 3rd was retrospectively disqualified for a backdated doping failure – finally receiving his medal in 2017.
As Andrew’s competitive career came to a close, he joined the leadership of personal genomics company DNAfit, building the world’s first digital platform to allow individuals to understand how their genetic profile affects exercise, nutrition, stress, and sleep response. DNAfit went on to be acquired by the Prenetics group in 2018, and over years since Andrew helped grow the EMEA business from a startup to a team of over 700, culminating in a successful Nasdaq listing at >$1bn valuation in 2022.

Sandra Einerhand

Sandra Einerhand
Sandra Einerhand is the founder and head of Einerhand Science & Innovation, an award winning nutrition consultancy providing tailored
solutions to the food and dietary supplements industry. Throughout her career Sandra has focused on scientifically substantiating health benefits of food and food ingredients. She has more than 25 years’ experience in the area of sport, Infant and medical nutrition while working as associate professor in academia and thereafter as R&D director at Tate&Lyle ingredients, Lipid Nutrition and Danone Nutricia.
In 2020, her company Einerhand Science & innovation won the Luxlife Food and Drink award for being the best European Early Life Nutrition Consultancy. In 2021, Sandra received the Nutrachampion Award and Go Global Award recognizing her science as well as business-oriented capabilities and expertise. Sandra also chairs the Nutrition Consultants Cooperative (NCC) and works as fellow for Presans, a Parisbased service provider in high-end open innovation. Since 2016, Sandra is an active as a jury member of: 1. Food Ingredients Global Start-up innovation challenge; 2. Food Ingredients Europe innovation awards, 3. the Nutraingredient awards and 4. ESSNA awards.
Previously, Sandra worked for Danone Nutricia Research, Tate & Lyle Ingredients and Lipid Nutrition as Scientific Program Director and Nutrition & Health Director. During the first part of her career, Sandra worked as associate professor at the Erasmus MC in Rotterdam. Sandra studied Chemistry in Amsterdam and has a PhD in Medicine. For further details, please visit the linked-in profile: www.linkedin.com/in/sandraeinerhand

Martin MacDonald

Martin MacDonald
Martin MacDonald is a clinical performance nutritionist, motivational speaker & educator; he is the CEO and founder of Mac-Nutrition Uni, the UK’s first ever evidence-based, distance learning nutrition qualification that allows you to become a fully Qualified & Insurable Nutritionist in just 12 months.
Having previously been a Registered Nutritionist with the Association for Nutrition, holding a BSc in Sport and Exercise Science and postgraduates in both Sports Nutrition and Clinical Nutrition, he has worked with Olympic medallists, World Champions & World Record holders as well as consulting for professional sports teams, organisations & NGBs around the world. He is well known for his online social media presence and his unwavering endeavours to promote integrity and evidence-based practice and to bring them to the forefront of the industry. Find out more at www.Martin-MacDonald.com.

Jesse Lambert-Harden

Jesse Lambert-Harden
Jesse Lambert-Harden is a nutrition coach and personal trainer with over 10 years in the industry. She is passionate about coaching women to fuel for both performance and health benefits and her clients range from the general population, recreational athletes to seasoned GB entrants. She is a regular contributor to 220 Triathlon magazine focusing on women in sport, developing nutrition courses as well as public health project development and delivery within the local community.

Dr Julien Louis

Dr Julien Louis
Dr Julien Louis is Reader in Nutrition and Exercise Physiology at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) where he has teaching and research duties. Julien is the Programme Leader for the MSc in Sport Nutrition at LJMU. Julien is also Associate Researcher at the French Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance (INSEP, Paris), and a Fellow of the European College of Sport Science.
Julien is the author of over 80 scientific publications in the field of sport sciences and he is a member of the Editorial Board of a number of scientific journals including the European Journal of Sport Science, Journal of Sport Sciences, Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, PlosOne, and Nutrients.
Julien’s research focuses on training, nutrition and recovery strategies for optimising sport performance, with an emphasis on elite sport. Julien is also interested in the effects of ageing on sport performance with masters athletes at the centre of his research.
In parallel to his academic roles, Julien regularly works as Nutritionist in Elite sport. He is the current performance Nutritionist of AG2R-Citroen professional cycling team, and previous appointments include Liverpool Football Club, Lille Football Club, the French Football Federation, and many Olympic sports.

Matt Kollat

Matt Kollat
Matt is the Fitness Editor of T3, covering everything from sports nutrition and healthy eating to sports and fitness and beyond. The T3 brand is over 25 years old – the magazine launched in 1996 – and T3.com is one of the UK’s leading consumer lifestyle websites. Over 5 million people visit T3.com every month for curated buying advice and the latest news on all things fitness, style, smart living, tech, wearables and more.
Matt’s always been a huge fan of fitness, and his achievements include being a co-host of the short-lived fitness show called Fit Mentality Podcast and being a judge at the Fit&Well Awards 2021 and Techradar Choice Awards 2021. He also has his own Youtube channel, Pace Max Pro, where he reviews fitness products and provides training and nutrition advice to viewers. Matt’s tested and reviewed many different sports supplements over the years, including complete meal shakes tailored to his DNA. He also tried many gadgets said to improve metabolisms, such as continuous blood-glucose monitors, ketone breath analysers, and even at-home urine tests providing personalised nutrition and lifestyle advice.
Matt is an expert in sports supplements (e.g. protein powders, mass gainers, protein bars and so on), running and workout shoes/gear, wearables (including running watches, fitness trackers and sports headphones) and home weights and gym equipment. He also knows a thing or two about workouts.
When he isn’t writing about fitness, he works out at home, runs, cycles, and loves a good ol’ walk around the city.

Dr Stephen Bailey

Dr Stephen Bailey
Dr Stephen Bailey is a Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Nutrition at Loughborough University.
Stephen’s research focuses on exercise and nutritional interventions to improve cardiovascular health, oxidative metabolism, and exercise performance. Stephen has published over 100 original research articles on these topics as well as several book chapters and review articles. He is a Fellow of the European College of Sport Science and serves on the editorial board of four international journals. Stephen has completed numerous research projects in collaboration with nutrition industry partners and elite sport organisations such as British Swimming and British Athletics.

Francesca Cappozzo

Francesca Cappozzo
Advertising Compliance Executive at PAGB, Freelance Nutritionist & Personal Trainer
Francesca works as Advertising Compliance Executive at PAGB, the consumer healthcare association representing the manufacturers of branded OTC medicines, self-care medical devices, and food supplements in the UK.
Francesca is responsible for the advertising compliance of major food supplements and pharmaceutical brands, working with companies such as Bayer, Sanofi, Haleon, and Perrigo. Her role consists of providing claims approval services for food supplement packs and advertising material including point of sale, TVC, social media, and website copies, as well as training PAGB members on the Advertising Codes. With over 7 years of experience in the nutrition sector and a master’s degree in sports nutrition, Francesca has also her own business working as a nutritionist (ANutr) and personal trainer @fitwithfranci.

Jens Bleiel

Jens Bleiel
Jens Bleiel is an entrepreneur and business economist by training. He started his career at a management consultant company in Germany. He worked with Milupa in Germany which was later acquired by Dutch company Numico (brands included Aptamil, Nutricia and Cow & Gate) and is part of Danone today. He held several management and executive functions in the baby food branch of the company in Germany, The Netherlands and Argentina and his last function was Global Marketing Director Infant Milks. After 10 years in this business, Jens Bleiel joined Dutch multinational DSM as Senior Vice President Metabolic Health Products, he built the functional food business in the area of societal lifestyle concerns, like weight management, diabetes, infant nutrition and sports nutrition.
Jens Bleiel was Chief Executive Officer of Food for Health Ireland for nine years up to 2018. Food for Health Ireland combines world-class science of seven Public Research Organisations and the industry expertise of five leading dairy companies (Glanbia, Kerry, Carbery, Dairygold and Ornua) in Ireland in one centre to develop new innovative ingredients and services for the global food, health, sports nutrition and well-being market.

Terence O’Rorke

Terence O’Rorke
Vice Chair of the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance and Business Development Manager at LGC Group
As Business Development Manager for international life sciences company LGC, Terence has been providing specialist services to the worldwide supplements industry for the last decade.
He manages LGC’s supplements testing services and certification programmes in Europe, Asia-Pacific and Africa. These include Informed Sport, Informed Choice, Informed Ingredient, and Informed Manufacturer.
Prior to joining LGC, Terence worked for the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in Montreal, which allowed him to develop unique anti-doping expertise. This experience and knowledge have been crucial in making Informed Sport the leading supplements certification programme worldwide.
Terence spent the first half of his career in sports communications, working for several international sports federations, including the Asian PGA Tour, the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) and Ladies European Tour (LET). He also reported on sport for Reuters, SKY and Eurosport.

Shane Starling

Shane Starling
Shane Starling is a 25-year+ journalist, analyst and communications specialist focused mostly in food, nutrition and technology. He is the former senior editor of NutraIngredients, FoodNavigator and other publications in the food and nutrition space where he extensively covered sports nutrition. He helped found the NutraIngredients Awards and is the founder of communications agency, Stardust Komms. A west Australian, he lives in Berlin, Germany. He likes cycling and wok cooking and thinks better nutrition is an under-utilised superpower.

Dr Adam Carey

Dr Adam Carey
CEO of Corperformance
Adam is Chair of the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance (ESSNA) and Founder and CEO of Corperformance. After qualifying from the University of Oxford Medical School in 1988, Adam spent 10 years training towards specialist qualifications in obstetrics and gynaecology with clinical and research interest focussed on endocrinology and nutrition. After leaving the NHS, Adam has been providing scientific nutritional solutions to elite athletes, corporate clients and media artists to improve their performance in the field, in the boardroom and on stage. He worked with the England Rugby Football Union from 1999 to 2006 as part of Sir Clive Woodward’s team which culminated with the World Cup success in 2003. In 2005 he worked with the England Cricket squad, leading to their success in the Ashes. Other sports clients have included Chelsea FC (Premiership title 2005) and Leeds Tykes (Powergen cup 2005).

Mark Gilbert

Mark Gilbert
Mark Gilbert B.A.Sc. (Nutrition), RNutr, CISSN
Mark has been involved in nutrition and healthcare for over 25 years, is a registered nutritionist and has held multiple certifications in sports nutrition, exercise science and pharmaceuticals. He is currently Nutritionist for The 1:1 Diet by Cambridge Weight Plan and Science Officer for TDMR Europe. Formerly, Mark was Vice Chair of the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance, Director of Consumers for Health Choice, author, international speaker, on the Advisory Board and columnist for Muscle & Fitness, Flex and Muscle Insider magazines and co-founder of FitnessGenes, Ltd. As a consultant, Mark has advised dozens of multi-national companies on product formulation/IP, regulatory affairs, corporate investment and marketing, including most of the world’s top sports nutrition companies, Tesco, Lion Capital and the Canadian Armed Forces. Mark has also worked with doctors, dietitians and specialist nurses in the NHS, advising and providing training on the use of enteral and parenteral nutrition and pharmaceuticals and worked with the police and the courts as an expert witness.

Claudia Mucciardi

Claudia Mucciardi
Associate Director, Regulatory & Quality Compliance – Europe, Nutrabolt and Vice-Chair, ESSNA
Claudia is a Vice-Chair of the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance and joined Nutrabolt in 2021 as Associate Director of Regulatory & Quality Compliance for Europe. She has hands-on experience with a range of sports nutrition products such as protein and pre-workout powders, protein and energy bars, as well as meal replacement products, RTDs and capsules & tablets. In terms of overall professional background, Claudia has over a decade’s worth of experience in compliance of sports foods and supplements, with previous roles at Herbalife, GSK and Glanbia Performance Nutrition.
Claudia has extensive knowledge and experience working with harmonised EU legislation as well as dealing with challenges which arise from differing national legislation, or from various interpretations of existing food law.

Luca Bucchini

Luca Bucchini
Managing Director of Hylobates Consulting
Luca is Vice-Chair of the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance and Managing Director of Hylobates Consulting. He is an expert in food and food supplement law, and a food risk scientist. Luca co-founded the food and cosmetics consultancy Hylobates and his team has registered thousands of sports nutrition products and food supplements across Europe, advising businesses, small and very large, on compliance with EU law.
Luca is also one of the directors of EuroFIR, the European non-profit organization of food composition databases. In recent years, he has been principal scientist on the pre-assessment team on a contract for EFSA, and has participated in several European Commission, and managed the PlantLIBRA project on plant food supplement, which helped start the Belfrit initiative on botanicals.
