Ben Clarsen is a physiotherapist and sports epidemiologist. He leads the Global Player Health Surveillance Programme at FIFA and is an Associate Professor at the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences. He has a bachelor’s degree in physiotherapy from the University of Sydney, and a master’s degree in sports physiotherapy and a PhD from the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences. Ben’s main professional interests include athlete health surveillance and prevention of overuse injuries. He combines research with more than 20 years’ practical experience in elite sport. From 2003 to 2011 he worked as a physiotherapist for professional and national cycling teams. From 2011 to 2019 he ran the injury and illness surveillance and periodic health evaluation programmes at the Norwegian Olympic Training Centre. He has worked as a clinician at the Tour de France and the Olympic Games, and currently leads the surveillance program at all FIFA tournaments. Ben co-founded the IOC Diploma in Sports Physical Therapies in 2015 and has directed it since. He has published more than 90 peer-reviewed papers. He was a senior associate editor of BJSM from 2013 to 2024, and senior editor of the 5th edition of Brukner and Khan’s Clinical Sports Medicine.
