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.

Meeting on the sidelines of the 6th AFC Medical Conference in the Chinese city of Chengdu, the Committee heard that due to the rapidly evolving nature in the field of science and medicine, there is a need for the highly regarded event to be held biennially rather than every four years.

With interest already registered to host the Conference’s next edition, it was also recommended that the theme should continue to be football specific and focused on the latest and current evidence-based practices.

AFC Medical Committee Chairman Dato’ Dr Gurcharan Singh, who led the discussion said: “The popularity and success, as well as the ever-evolving nature of football medicine, has necessitated the possibility for the AFC Medical Conference to be staged every two years instead of every four which it currently is.

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 conference, held every four years, continues to draw an ever-increasing number of participants and has gone from strength to strength since its inception in 1995 in Tokyo, Japan.

With Chengdu's Century City International Convention Centre (CCICC) playing host to this year’s prestigious gathering, pre-conference events including team physician, sports physiotherapy and anti-doping courses as well as workshops on football emergency medicine, traditional complementary medicine and practical examinations of the knee, ankle and hamstring are just some of the highlights in store for those attending.

The two-day course will see from 14 medical officers from 11 Member Associations go through a series of theoretical and practical sessions, relevant to the duties and responsibilities of AFC Medical Officers in AFC tournaments.

The programme, which was recommended by FIFA with the Chairperson of the AFC Medical Committee during the FIFA Medical Committee Meeting in Zurich in March 2018, is aimed at training Medical & Doping Control Officers on strategies to fight doping and provide updates on the current trends in the doping control programme.