FIMS mail - 3rd edition 2012 (Lausanne, 12 October 2012)

President’s Message

Dear Colleagues,

It has been an exceptional pleasure and honour for me to welcome participants at the opening of the 32nd FIMS World Congress of Sports Medicine in Rome, doing so not only for the first time as FIMS President, but also seeing it organized for the first time in my home country. I would like to share with you some ideas of my opening speech as they summarise major aspects of FIMS recent and future development.

Sport includes all forms of human movement aimed to express, maintain or improve physical health, fitness and performance as well as mental well-being. Beyond the competition with others, sport and physical exercise play a vital role in maintaining and improving health at all levels of prevention, in the treatment of numerous diseases as well as in building self-confidence and social capital. Our work as sports physicians is no longer only aimed at protecting athletes' health, so that they may safely compete in sporting events, and the fight against doping in sport, but the responsibility of our specialty is more and more extending to recreational sports and exercise as a major tool to improve public health. Over the past years, FIMS has grown in influence and reliability thanks to our efforts in disseminating and supporting sound ethical principles of motivation and performance but also in promoting and teaching the invaluable health benefits of sport and physical activity for everyone. Our achievements in these fields are testified by the highest number of registrations ever in a FIMS World Congress of almost 2800 participants.

During three days, faculty members, sports physicians, sport scientists, physiotherapists, biokineticists and students from 94 FIMS National Associations all around world discussed latest scientific results in research, new advances in technologies and best practice of sports medicine, renewing their common vision of health maintenance and enhancement in and through exercise, of prevention and therapy of disease, of injury prevention, treatment and return to sport. I would like to cordially thank the Italian Federation of Sports Medicine and its President Maurizio Casasco who made this unique event possible.

Looking back at my first two years of presidency with the congress marking its half-time, I wish to express my gratitude to my colleagues of the Executive and to my predecessors for their support. Much has been done, but one of the most important milestones has undoubtedly been the establishment of the FIMS headquarters at the Maison du Sport Internationale in Lausanne - a return to the roots where FIMS was founded during the Winter Olympic Games in Saint Moritz in1928. The close proximity will surely contribute to strengthening our relationship with the sport, scientific and medical communities and the leading international bodies.

Another milestone is the establishment of the FIMS Collaborating Centres of Sports Medicine, planned by the Executive Committee since its election. These centres will function as local ambassadors of FIMS´ vision and mission and help to achieve our shared objectives in all parts of the world. I am very much looking forward to this collaboration. Further, there were numerous educational initiatives including courses, scientific statements and two major publications, to promote the principles of best practice in sports medicine. I am hoping to add further milestones during the second half of my presidency, hopefully aided by a continuously improving financial base for our activities.

I thank all of you for your support of FIMS, and particularly those who have participated in our world congress and made it such an overwhelming success. I hope that our next Congress to be held in Quebec, Canada, in 2014 will attract even more participants and further contribute to the growth of the FIMS family as well as of the knowledge and skills in sports medicine of colleagues from all over the world.

Fabio Pigozzi, FIMS President

XXXII WORLD CONGRES OF SPORTS MEDICINE, 27-30 SEPTEMBER 2012, ROME, ITALY

The event organised by the Italian Sports Medicine Federation (FMSI) attracted 2798 participants from all over the world, the highest number of attendants ever registered at a FIMS World Congress. While participants from the host country naturally constituted the largest national group; Iran, Greece and Brazil were impressively presented by numerous participants, and smaller groups from multiple countries in Africa, Asia and Oceania attended, too, demonstrating the attractiveness of the congress for colleagues on all continents.

The opening ceremony was attended by important Italian officials, among others the four Italian IOC Members Franco Carraro, Mario Pescante (also IOC Executive Board Member), Ottavio Cinquanta (also ISU President) and Ricci Bitti (also ITF President, ASOIF President and WADA Executive Board Member), the Italian Minister of Health, the Minister of Education, University and Research, the Italian NOC Secretary General and the President of the Italian Paralympic Committee.

The programme spanned the whole spectrum of sports medicine from molecular biology; physiology; nutrition; training; performance; injury prevention, treatment and rehabilitation; return-to-sports; anti-doping matters to specific target groups including paralympic athletes, children, women and the aged; and environmental, ethical and legal aspects. Underlining its importance, physical activity to promote health and treat disease played a major role, featuring in the opening lecture and in two plenary sessions. Participants could choose from four different parallel sessions at a time and visit an extensive poster exhibition.

Further, a two-day FIMS Emergency Medicine Course was offered, giving an introduction into the many aspects of emergency care across disciplines. The course programme offered was complemented by a FIMS TP Instructor Course for colleagues having completed the FIMS Team Physician Course and intending to lead, organise and lecture at FIMS courses internationally.

Finally, there was an impressive industrial exhibition allowing attendants to inform themselves about the latest pharmaceutical and technical developments aiding therapy and rehabilitation in sports medicine as well as browsing through major publications in sports medicine and related specialties.

News from the Commissions - FIMS Collaborating Centres of Sports Medicine

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the sports medicine centres who have submitted their application to become a FIMS Collaborating Centre of Sports Medicine. Their interest and commitment to facilitate national and regional educational and research networks allows the long awaited start to international collaboration within the FIMS framework on a new level. The Review Committee convened for the purpose of evaluating the submitted applications met in Rome under the chair of Prof. Norbert Bachl to evaluate the experiences made during this first phase of the project.

Together with the FIMS Education Commission, the process of application and accreditation as a FIMS Collaborating Centre was further developed and information on the same will be updated on the FIMS website within the next weeks. The Committee is currently reviewing the submitted applications and candidates will be informed on their eligibility shortly. We hope to encourage many more colleagues from centres worldwide to apply and become part of this network in order to advance best practice in sports medicine everywhere, but particularly in regions and countries where our discipline is still developing.

News from the Commissions - Council of Delegates

The Council of Delegates was held on 28 September as part of the World Congress with 59 delegates from 5 continents being present. One very important and positive agenda item was the report by the treasurer and the biennal budget 2012-2013 which clearly demonstrated that the intensive fundraising efforts by the President are bearing fruit.

As a routine at the Council for decades, delegates also voted on the host city for the next FIMS World Congress of Sports Medicine. There were three candidates competing for being awarded this mandate: Istanbul, Turkey, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. All candidates gave professional and well-reflected presentations. After Kuala Lumpur being eliminated in the first round of voting, Istanbul won the majority of votes in the second. The organising committee headed by Dr Ermin Ergen gave a convincing demonstration of their vision of the World Congress in the City on Two Continents, including specific considerations on how to enable colleagues with restricted budgets to participate. The congress will be held from 30st September to 2nd October 2016 at the Congress Valley in Istanbul.

Publications

The new edition of the FIMS Team Physician Manual is currently in print and shall be released for purchase shortly.

The 3rd edition of the FIMS Team Physician Manual is an updated version of our guide for doctors who deal with sports teams and athletes. In addition to the completely updated version, there are new chapters on important topics such as cardiovascular screening of athletes, and on the special medical issues to be considered in physically challenged athletes.

This 3rd edition of the FIMS Team Physician Manual is edited by a group of leading sports medicine experts, and the chapters are written by specialists in their field, always with the needs of the team physician in mind. The text is the basis of FIMS’ highly-regarded Team Physician Development Course and deserves to found space in the team doctor’s medical bag as his/her trusty tape and strapping.

Upcoming events

The next FIMS Executive Committee meeting will be held in Salvador, Brazil, in conjunction with the 25th Brazilian Congress of Sports and Exercise Medicine, on May 16th 2013.