UKSI presents at the 7th IOC World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sport
Members of the UK Sports Institute [UKSI] recently attended and presented at the 7th IOC World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness.
Taking place in Monaco, the three-day event is the premier international conference for those interested in athlete health and provides a unique opportunity for the global sport community to meet.
The UKSI was represented by members of the Athlete Health, Female Athlete Health, Mental Health, Performance Data, Performance Rehabilitation and Performance Innovation teams, with expertise from all areas being presented on during the conference.
The UKSI staff members who attended the conference shared their thoughts and reflections on the event.
Craig Ranson, Director of Athlete Health and Director of Performance Data, reflected: “Amongst the plethora of information shared by the global athlete health community, it was terrific to see our people and our partners expertly disseminating the considerable body of UKSI led research and applied practice.
“There is no doubt that the UKSI is at the forefront of optimising athlete health, benefitting British and international athletes through our sharing and collaboration.”
Anna Jackson, Respiratory Physiologist – Athlete Health – said: “Respiratory health was well represented as a topic across the conference and there were several thought-provoking sessions regarding return to sport after respiratory illness and techniques for retraining athletes with ‘dysfunctional breathing.’
“Overall, it was clear from the workshops and symposia we contributed to that the UK Sports Institute is certainly excelling in this area – it is exciting to know that we already have plans on how we can build on this!”
Callum Repper, Clinical Lead – Performance Rehabilitation – added: “There were immediate takeaways for Performance Rehabilitation and the wider system in terms of assessment choice and interpretation, exercise selection and programming, and reflections regarding the evolution of our physical diagnostics service more broadly.
“I look forward to discussing reflections from these sessions and more across the network in the coming weeks.”
Dr Oliver Sindall, Mental Health Lead, said: “This was my first IOC Conference and I had the privilege of presenting findings from one of our mental health research strands, focusing on education delivery and athlete’s requesting referrals for mental health support – our team was particularly proud that this work was also mentioned in the keynote speech on mental health.
“I wasn’t sure how much mental health would be on the agenda, given the predominately physical focus of injury and illness in elite sport. It was extremely encouraging to hear former athletes, medics and academics highlighting the importance of mental health.”
Moses Wootten, Senior Analyst – Performance Data – added: “I was at the conference for two presentations, but to also listen and learn from what other people are doing with injury surveillance and using their injury data.
“I took a lot away from the conference, but one thing is for sure; both qualitative and quantitative data are here to stay, which means being data-informed will continue to be a competitive advantage in improving our athlete’s health and performance.”
The countdown is on to the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games that take place later this year in Paris. The UK Sports Institute will be supporting sports and athletes in the build up to the Games, as well as having a large number of practitioners on the ground in Paris.