4 Introduction What does David Haye, Venus Williams and Carl Lew-is all have in common? Aside from being elite athletes whom at one stage or another have dominated their re-spective sports, each of these individuals have achieved their phenomenal success whilst living on a vegan diet.According to figures from the Vegan Society, the num-ber of vegans in the UK has risen by 350%, whilst re-search company GlobalData claims veganism has grown by as much as 500% in the United States in just three years. This reflects the substantial growth in the amount of people around the world converting to a plant-based diet in recent years. However, when it comes to nutri-tion many people have questioned how it is possible for a vegan athlete to sustain a protein-rich diet necessary to aid muscle recovery. The “Nutrition Technician”, Lisa J Lowery-Jones, tackles fact and fiction in order to provide useful advice on achieving success using a vegan diet.This expert guide also discusses another important aspect of nutrition for athletic performance. In Sarah Kirkham’s article about hydration we learn that just 4% dehydration can affect athletic performance by up to 25%. Sarah offers helpful guidance on how much hy-dration is enough whilst also outlining the different benefits of hypotonic, isotonic and hypertonic drinks. For day-to-day hydration, Sarah also provides useful tips for meeting your fluid needs.Also in this edition, Christopher Holland, Senior Lec-turer in Sports Therapy at the University of Worcester, shares his expertise in discussing joint mobilisation in the treatment of lateral ankle sprains – one of the most common lower extremity injuries within the physically active population. We also interview Dragos Luscan to learn more about his work as a personal trainer and wellness & physical coach. The former professional handball player in the Romanian National League has since worked as a physical coach for the national team and has also helped guide tennis superstars, Horia Tecau and Florin Mergea, to medals at the Rio Olympic Games in 2016. IntroduC tIon