Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kathmandu: Football educational opportunities are abundant in Nepal as the Head Coaches Workshop and Football Medicine Course kicked off in a joint opening ceremony at the ANFA (ALL Nepal Football Association) Complex in Satdobato, Lalitpur, on Tuesday. The courses are part of the educational activities of the AFC U-14 (Boys) Festival of Football for the South region.
AFC Elite Medical Officers Dr. Arya Roy of India and Dr. Ajay Rana from Nepal are conducting the Football Medicine Course attended by head coaches, referees, physiotherapists and ‘C’ Certificate Coaching Course participants.
Five head coaches and five physiotherapists from the festival participating teams -- Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Bhutan -- will get knowledge and updates on the recent trend of healthcare in football from the AFC experts.
Four physiotherapists based in the host nation are also attending the medical course.
Dr. Roy has described the course as one that offers a unique opportunity for all participating in the festival to share ideas and knowledge.
“As we are conducting the course in conjunction with all the other courses in the festival, other football proponents such as head coaches, referees, ‘C’ Course participating coaches and of course, the main participants of the medical course who are the physiotherapists, get an opportunity to get knowledge on the latest trend of healthcare in football,” said Dr. Roy.
Dr. Roy believes the festival is an ideal place to bring awareness to people on injury preventive measures advocated by FIFA and AFC.
“As all the participants of the festival are young, educating them would be fruitful,” he said.
Dr. Rana has opined that the whole festival programme, not just the medical course, is aimed at educating concerned individuals at the grassroots level.
“The Festival of Football is more about sharing ideas and knowledge rather than just a competition,” said Dr. Rana.
Physiotherapist Dr. Dejib Thapa, who has looked after the Nepali national team on numerous occasions, is delighted to get the opportunity to update himself on the recent trend of football medicine from the experienced instructors.
“We could be implementing old methods and practising outdated ideas regarding football medicine, and the course will help upgrade us with the recent trends and practices,” said Dr. Thapa.
“I also believe physios in the South Asian region are lagging behind in terms of implementing proper and recent methods, so the ideas and knowledge they gain from the AFC experts would be very helpful.”