More than 50 team physiotherapists from 31 Member Associations are attending the course held at the world-renowned medical centre, Aspetar, with the goal of enhancing their knowledge and learning new and advanced medical treatments.

This is the first time participants of the AFC President's Travelling Fellow for Football Medicine experienced how medical and anti-doping methods were put in place during the AFC U23 Championship Thailand 2020.

NSIM will now be part of seven established medical centres under the AFC Medical Centre of Excellence which was launched in 2018 to provide better healthcare for footballers in Asia while looking at ways to improve sports medicine research.

The three-day programme, organised by the TFF, saw participation from 29 clubs, national team doctors and physiotherapists.

The participants were exposed to theoretical and practical sessions, on-pitch emergency medicine and anti-doping procedures.

The three-day course will run from July 15-17 and will see the 26 participants undergo theoretical and practical sessions that will focus on evidence-based sports medicine topics.

The course is part of the AFC President’s Development initiative which aims to strengthen the capabilities of Member Associations in the various aspects of football development, in particular, the protection and care of the health of football players so that they can always perform at the optimum level.

Held on the sidelines of the 6th AFC Medical Conference in the Chinese city of Chengdu, the AFC Football Medicine Awards are designed to acknowledge and recognise the contribution of medical professionals to the development of football and, at the same time, serve as an inspiration to others to continue their involvement in the game at all levels.

Among the winners was medical luminary Professor Haruhito Aoki from Japan who was honoured with the AFC Football Medicine Merit Award and the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Dr. Zohreh Haratian who received the AFC Young Medical Officer Award.

With Professor Aoki unable to attend Dr. Tsuguo Morikawa received the award on his behalf.

In addition, some 25 other professionals received AFC Distinguished Gold, Silver and Bronze Service Awards for outstanding service to their respective professions.

The Chennai-based facility which strives to be a dedicated world-class centre for sports science, medical services and education in India, has met all the criteria including the AFC guidelines, and is the first facility in the country to receive the AFC’s recognition.

AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa presented the award to CSS Director Dr. S. Arumugam at the accreditation ceremony, which was also attended by AFC General Secretary Dato’ Windsor John.

Dr. Arumugam expressed his gratitude and also said: “Football is a growing sport in India, and this recognition gives us the opportunities to collaborate with leaders in the football industry, and most importantly, attain best practices and guidelines that would benefit the athletes.”