The Distinguished Research Award recognises extraordinary scientific contribution to the field of sport management. This accolade acknowledges Dr Geurin’s record of intellectual contributions, advancement of knowledge to the literature and practice, authorship of original and important ideas, as well as her mentorship and support of colleagues.
As the inaugural winner, Andrea received her award at the Founders Night Dinner. The conference was attended by over 800 people, and an introductory speech was given by Professor Bri Newland from New York University (NYU), praising Dr Geurin for her work: “Andrea has led the field as a pioneer of social media research in sport. With a focus on Olympic and niche sport athletes and organisations, she explored how athletes can better use social platforms to enhance their voice and image. [She] has developed toolkits based on her work and has led several trainings on how to improve social media use, especially for those who have very limited resources to help develop their brand and their following.”
When accepting the award, Dr Geurin said: “My hope for NASSM and our sport management journals is that we keep an open mind when new research streams emerge, and we embrace research that may not fit neatly within the traditional confines of sport management; and my hope for all the young researchers is that you will be bold and persist with research that you believe in, even if it takes some time for that research to be more widely accepted.”
Dr Geurin has published extensively on the topics of sport communication and marketing, specifically focusing on athletes’ and sport organisations’ use of social media, as well as media portrayals of athletes of differing race, gender, and nationality.
Her work has appeared in over 70 peer-reviewed academic journal articles and book chapters, including articles in the Journal of Sport Management, Sport Management Review, Sport Marketing Quarterly, and European Sport Management Quarterly. She also serves as an Associate Editor for two journals: European Sport Management Quarterly and Managing Sport & Leisure. Additionally, she is an editorial board member of four other academic journals.