AFC Medical and FIFA Doping Control Course concludes on Feb. 27
This course is held every four years for participants to refresh and update their knowledge and to incorporate a standardise care to footballers in Asia
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Medical Officers and FIFA Doping Control Officers course successfully opened in Sri Lanka, (February 24) underlining the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) continued commitment to safeguard the health of footballers and the integrity of the sport. The four day course concludes on February 27.
The course, which is organised in Sri Lanka for the first time, welcomes 58 participants from 22 Member Associations (MA) covering various aspects concerning the health of football players and the best practices in antidoping procedures.
The course is also a platform for participants to engage and learn about the latest developments in sports medicine as well as to get an update on the AFC’S competitions.
President of Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL) Anura De Silva said at the opening ceremony: “The FFSL is proud and grateful to host this course in our beautiful country.
This is the first time Sri Lanka has hosted this course so we must thank the AFC and FIFA for giving us this opportunity. We are all here working towards a common goal – to learn about the best and latest medical practices.”
AFC Deputy Chairperson of the Medical Committee and Member of the FIFA Medical Committee, Dr. Gurcharan Singh added: “This course is held every four years for participants to refresh and update their knowledge and to incorporate a standardise care to footballers in Asia. In the next four days, we will be tackling various issues both in football medicine and football doping matters.
“We have been entrusted by the AFC to do our duties at the highest standard by providing our footballers with the best care while also optimising their performance. In this course, all participants will learn about the standard guidelines which we have to practice in unity and doctrine.”
Among some of the topics covered during the course include the challenges faced by medical officers when travelling with teams and tackling the extreme environmental issues in Asia. Participants will also hear from FIFA in their fight against doping in football while they will also receive an update on the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) code.