Ross Campbell has been a tireless advocate of student sport for which his commitment and enthusiasm was recently recognised through two awards—the Scottish Student Sport (SSS) Honorary President’s Medal and the Honorary Blues Award Winner 2025 from the Sports Union.
He played a pivotal role in the creation of Oriam—Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre—and as Executive Director he continues to inspire and lead its ongoing development, striving to position Heriot-Watt University as a leading sports university.
Can you tell us a little about your journey to Executive Director of Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre?
“It’s two decades since I graduated, but Heriot-Watt remains a critical part of my life. I feel everything I’ve achieved has stemmed from what I did, and who I met, while I was at the University.
I studied maths, a subject I’m not sure I was much good at really! But my experience of being a student here was central to everything since; it rekindled my love of football and grew my ambition and motivation. So, from being elected as Sports President, to working and pursuing a career in sport—both as an athlete and as a coach—I feel my time at Heriot-Watt set in motion a pathway to becoming a senior leader in sport.
I met my wife here too. And made some of my best friends. So, Heriot-Watt’s legacy for me is quite profound.
I have worked at Oriam, including its previous iteration as the Centre for Sport and Exercise, since I graduated in 2005 across various roles and parts of the business before becoming Executive Director in 2017. It was a huge collective effort to develop what was a successful bid to bring Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre to the Edinburgh campus, and that in itself felt like a significant career achievement. Then, being appointed Executive Director of a national centre at just 34 years old made me very proud.
Eight years on, and I still feel privileged to be in this role and very passionate about it.”
Students play table football outside Oriam.
Ross playing for Montrose FC.
Have there been particular highlights as Oriam has developed?
“The recent opening of the Indoor Tennis Centre was a highlight. It was quite an exhaustive process to bring it to fruition, and it will provide a huge boost for tennis in the region.
Rather than specific highlights though, for me, it’s more about the culture we’ve developed here. Oriam is an inspirational place to work because of the dedication and commitment of our staff, and how together we’ve created a place for both elite performance sport and a resource for ordinary users, for the community, and for Heriot-Watt students and staff. That balance really matters, and I think it is a crucial aspect of Oriam’s purpose, and of its success.”
Do you enjoy your job?
“A colleague recently commented that as staff at Oriam we get to work with people, our users, for what is probably the best part of their week or day. That’s uplifting. We are part of, and contribute to, a positive environment and as a team we feed off that energy. And working with elite sports men and women makes us want to excel too.
I find it a hugely motivating role, and one where I need to keep driving myself to get better at what I do. Then there are the opportunities and possibilities that come through the partnerships we develop, and through our deepening engagement with the University across many areas.
It is a constantly interesting, challenging and inspiring role. So, yes, I enjoy my job!”
The opening of the new Indoor Tennis Centre at Oriam. L to R: Forbes Dunlop, sportscotland; Sophie Curthoys, Lawn Tennis Association; Maree Todd, MSP; Professor Richard A. Williams, Heriot-Watt University; Blane Dodds, Tennis Scotland; and Ross.
Ross receiving the Honorary Blues Award from Principal and Vice-Chancellor Professor Richard A. Williams.
How do you manage such a senior role along with all your other responsibilities?
“I guess I do juggle quite a lot—I am also Assistant Manager for Montrose Football Club, a father to two young children, and I’m currently studying an MBA!
It’s definitely about balance, a skill that I acquired fairly early in my life, and which has allowed me to enjoy that triumvirate of family, football and Oriam pretty well.
Being physically active boosts my energy, strength and stamina, so that helps, but I've got brilliant colleagues at Oriam, and a wonderful wife and kids, and their support makes it possible for me to operate like this.”
Can you tell us more about the partnership with the University?
“The new sports strategy ‘Excellence Across Sport’ is all about embedding sport, exercise and active wellbeing into the fabric of University life.
With Heriot-Watt there are many avenues for developing more impact—across research, student placements, shared staffing, additional facilities, investment, services and commercial expansion.
We are actively connecting into the University’s new Strategy 2035 and focusing on how we enable the community to engage with physical activity and sport, regardless of ability and geographic location.
Oriam is more than just a physical facility. We are about creating communities, and they don’t have to be in Oriam to be part of Oriam. Our core message that being physically active is beneficial to everyone, applies anywhere in the world, to Heriot-Watt’s global campuses, its online community, and to its alumni.”
Heriot-Watt Sports Science students in a laboratory in Oriam.
Ross receiving the Scottish Student Sport (SSS) Honorary President’s Medal.
How are you developing that global outlook?
“We are supporting Heriot-Watt’s campuses to identify opportunities, be they across student engagement, research, leadership, business or elite sport.
We are also developing global programmes. One example is ‘Brain Breaks’, which is about encouraging active wellbeing wherever you are in the world. We are working to roll it out across the whole University community. So many of us are desk-bound and working at screens, so it’s about building in little pockets of simple activity, which is so beneficial for our bodies and minds and can help to boost productivity.
A global outlook is about creating a culture where being physically active is part of what Heriot-Watt is, and where everyone—at any level—feels supported and inspired to engage with it, be that students, staff or alumni.”
What role can alumni play in Oriam’s ongoing journey?
“There are so many connections that have been made over Heriot-Watt University’s 200+ year history.
We're working with the Alumni team around how we can celebrate and animate those connections by highlighting stories of where sport or physical activity has played a role in our graduates’ journeys.
If we want to succeed in our ambition of making Heriot-Watt a top university for sport, we need our alumni, both from the stories that they can tell and the support they can provide to help fulfil this ambition.
Telling stories is so motivational for others. We know that participating in university sport is often a key part of the student experience, bringing people together and forging lifelong relationships. We would love alumni to reach out to us and tell us their stories about engaging in physical activity, and not just in clubs or an elite manner, but in any way that mattered to them.”
