Each year, individuals whose leadership has advanced the integration of physical activity into healthcare and communities around the world are recognized for their contribution through the EIM Global Leadership award. The award honors leaders who have helped expand the EIM global movement to make physical activity assessment and promotion a standard part of health care. This year’s recipients have demonstrated exceptional commitment to improving health through education, collaboration, research, and implementation across diverse settings and populations.
Robyn Stuhr, MA, FACSMa Clinical Exercise Physiologist, served as the Vice President of EIM for over 8 years. Robyn’s career has taken her from coast to coast, working at Virginia Mason Health System in Seattle, East to the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, and South to the University of San Diego, where she was recruited to become the Vice President of EIM. In this role, Robyn provided oversight for the full scope of EIM activities, including nine ACSM member committees, the EIM Global Network, EIM On Campus, the EIM World Congress, EIM Emerging Leaders, and the EIM Ambassadors program. She worked closely with subject matter experts, ACSM members, and staff to update and expand EIM’s online resources for healthcare providers, patients, and exercise professionals. She also collaborated with more than 40 experts and an online design team to develop a new 15-hour interactive EIM online course for exercise professionals. During her tenure, she helped guide updates to the EIM website and produced a monthly EIM e-newsletter reaching more than 10,000 subscribers. She also worked with the EIM Governance Board to develop a strategic plan grounded in continuous improvement science and supported staff and member teams – who were constantly flooding her with “let’s do this” ideas – in implementing prioritized tactics and tracking key performance indicators. Robyn walks the talk as a devoted cyclist, loves a good glass of red wine, and is a friend to many.
Anastassios (Tassos) Philippou, PhD, a professor of physiology in the School of Medicine at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, is the global recipient of the EIM Global Leader award. A member of EIM Greece since its inception in 2016, Tassos has served as the Director of the EIM Greece National Center since 2022. Under his leadership, EIM Greece has made significant progress in advancing physical activity within healthcare systems and clinical practice. In collaboration with the Greek Ministry of Health, exercise was incorporated into the country’s national health guidelines in 2019, followed by the establishment of therapeutic exercise within the national health system in 2022. Through collaborations with six hospitals, EIM Greece has supported the development of clinical exercise training programs for individuals with breast cancer, obesity, diabetes, dementia, and pregnant women. In addition, EIM Greece partnered with the Greek Association of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation to organize an Exercise is Medicine® educational course for 50 physiatrists, further advancing education and training for Greek healthcare providers. Beyond Greece, Philippou has been a consistent presence in the growth of EIM throughout Europe. EIM Greece has hosted two international EIM congresses, including the 2025 congress, which also served as the site of the 2025 EIM European Regional Meeting. Through these efforts, Philippou has helped strengthen collaboration among National Centers and support EIM across Greece and Europe.
Together, these two 2026 EIM Global Leadership award recipients reflect the global reach and collaborative spirit of the EIM movement. Through leadership in education, healthcare integration, policy development, and international partnership, Robyn Stuhr and Tassos Philippou have helped advance a shared vision of making physical activity assessment and promotion a standard part of healthcare systems and communities worldwide.
