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Jamaican Olympic Team doctor |
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Written by Dr. Garth A. Rose
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Monday, 01 September 2008 |
 The Jamaican Olympic team which performed with excellence at the Beijing Olympics, securing 11 medals, including 6 Gold, and made sprinter Usain Bolt an international household name, had a strong South Florida connection. Broward chiropractor Dr. Michael Douglas was assigned as one of the Jamaican team doctors, traveling with the team and treating the athletes from training camp in Tianjin through to their residence in the Olympics village in Beijing.
This was the fourth Olympics for Dr. Douglas with a Jamaican Olympic team. The first, being the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Although he has had success working with the athletes at other Olympics and World Championships, in his opinion this was the most successful. This was due not only to the great achievements of the team, but also because there was the presence of a very strong team spirit. “The team members acted very mature,” Douglas told National Weekly in an interview shortly after his return from China on Tuesday.
“Team members and team officials were on one page. Even when athletes did not succeed in their events, and there were several who did not live up to their expectations, despite the overall success of the team, they took their losses in stride. It was great to see athletes who were more successful keeping those not so fortunate motivated. Even when the young women who ran the 4 x 100 meters relay were disqualified after failing to pass the baton, this was easily overcome as their teammates gave them strong support.”
Dr. Douglas said that in his opinion the positive mood of the team went a long way in pushing most of the athletes to perform at their personal best. “There was also a strong spiritual component among the team. Most members wore wrist bands with spiritual verses. I must say the team’s faith was very strong. The camaraderie and obvious strong spirituality among the team was especially helpful for me, after losing my father during the games.” Douglas said.
The mood of the team improved significantly when it moved from training camp in Tianjin to the Olympic Village in Beijing, Douglas said. In Tianjin there were language barriers with most of the hotel staff speaking Chinese, plus there were restrictions on electricity use, and some of the taller athletes had some problems walking through the low doorways of the hotels, built, understandably, with the shorter stature Chinese people in mind. The facilities the Olympic Village were all first class. The athletes had everything they wanted at their disposal which did wonders to motivate them.
“Although there were no major injuries among the team, most had minor problems,” Douglas said. These were related to stiff muscles and aching spines. He provided pre-race examination and treatment, including analysis of muscles for tightness and restriction of movement of the spine. Treatment included massages, stretches, and realignment techniques. His focus was to determine and treat any area of vulnerability in an athlete’s physique. He also provides post-race treatment where athletes were examined for muscular strains, and received massages and icepack treatment after events.
The relatively new Kinesio taping, now very popular in sports medicine, was very helpful. This taping method involves taping over and around muscles in order to assist and give support or to prevent over-contraction. Douglas informed that he also applied treatment with the Class 4 Hot Laser a tool that decreased inflammation in the athlete’s muscles.
“The attention that Bolt received from the Chinese fans was unbelievable,” said Douglas. “They really appreciated his achievements, and constantly flocked him for autographs.”
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