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Group photo with some of the participants: Front row (left to right) Ms. Emelia Ramdhani, Asst. Secretary of G.O.A; Mrs. Vidushi Persaud-McKinnon, Secretary-General of the G.O.A; Ms. Vanessa Wickham, Sports Physiotherapist; Dr. Ariane Mangar, Head of Rehabilitation Department, Ministry of Health; Dr. Akshai Mansingh, Dean of Sports Medicine at the University of the West Indies; Mr. Godfrey Munroe, President of the Guyana Olympic Association; and Mr. Garfield Wiltshire, Treasurer of the G.O.A The Guyana Olympic Association has successfully hosted a sports medicine workshop with approximately seventy (70) participants at Olympic House at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara.
Under the chairmanship of Secretary-General Mrs. Vidushi Persaud-McKinnon, the Workshop was declared open by the President of the Guyana Olympic Association, Mr. Godfrey Munroe, on Saturday 23rd September, 2023, and he outlined the background and reiterated the intention of his Executive Committee to continue to explore new pathways to enhance athletes’ performances and strengthen the Olympic Association’s policies, vision, and strategic plan to evaluate and pave the way forward.
The workshop was commended by all present, as it was a true enlightenment for all participants present. Delivering Remarks also was Dr. Ariane Mangar, Head of the Rehabilitation Department, Ministry of Health, who commended the tripartite collaboration between the Guyana Olympic Association, the Ministry of Health, and the Guyana Physiotherapists Association.
Presenters included Ms. Vanessa Wickham, a Sports Physiotherapist who works at the National Sports Physiotherapy Department at the National Aquatic Centre. Most recently, she has been working with the G.O.A. with various travelling teams.
Topics included factors/ steps to decrease risk of injury, and the importance of recovery for the athlete.
Participants were treated to a surprise presentation by the renowned Dr. Akshai Mansingh, Dean of Sports Medicine at the University of West Indies, Mona Campus, and the Chief Medical Officer for West Indies Cricket and the Caribbean Premiere League.
His interactive presentation on the role of the coach in the management of injuries was well received by those present.
The Guyana Olympic Association’s affiliated members and invited coaches and athletes further understood the proposed working relationship between the National Sports Clinic and the Guyana Olympic Association. President Munroe’s remarks on the intention of linking affiliates with physiotherapists was met with resounding applause. He explained that the Executive is working on, and will be collaborating with, physiotherapists on how to assign physiotherapists to affiliates to work with coaches and athletes post and pre-competition procedures.
The aim is to further establish a database tracking of athletes. A baseline to be created and work to begin from there.
At the end of the workshop, participants interacted over refreshments, networked and left understanding inter alia how sports injuries are managed, better able to identify factors which contribute to injuries, understanding steps that can be taken to reduce the risk of developing injuries, understanding how coaches can support athletes during pre-habilitation and rehabilitation.
This Workshop was the first of a series to be undertaken as the Guyana Olympic Association aims to empower its affiliate members through support for executives of national federations, coaches and athletes.
