Physical fitness, exercise and sports have been one of the central health philosophy and practice in the Chinese tradition. There has always been an emphasis in physical fitness that as you walk around in the morning or late in the afternoon you will always see Chinese people, old and young doing exercises. Luckily for international students, through the Sport Medicine conference organised by the Wuhan University International Students Union, got a feel and an understanding of the importance of physical fitness. Two experts, Dr Chen Biao, Senior Orthopedic Surgeon at Zhongnan Hospital and Dr Antonio Alonso, a specialist in psycho-somatic therapy, were invited to share their knowledge and expertise in this field, which left the students amazed and asking for more.
Students Annush and Nasra Weheliye from Wuhan University Medical Campus introduced and explained the science behind Sports Medicine. In brief words, it is a field of medical science that focuses on helping people improve their athletic performance, recover from injury and prevent future injuries. After that, Miss Liu Ye Bing in-charge of the International Students’ Affairs Office was invited onto the stage to give a brief introduction of the guest speakers.
Dr. Chen Biao was then invited to address the students and to highlight to them the benefits of having a proper insight into this field of science. Dr. Chen Biao told the students that Sports Medicine is a fast-growing health care field, because health workers who specialize in sports medicine help all kinds of people, not just athletes. He further added that Sports medicine professionals treat amateur athletes, those who want better results from their exercise program, people who have suffered injuries and are trying to regain full function and those with disabilities who are trying to increase mobility and capability. The main emphasis of Dr. Chen Biao was the leg injury, its treatment and how to avoid it.
Dr. Antonio Alonso was then invited to demonstrate some methods of special treatment where he helped some volunteer students get relief in variety of injuries and fatigues including back-pain, shoulder pain, hamstring etc.
Mr. Purushottam Shrestha, Executive President of WISU for Sports and Education, followed Dr. Antonio and expressed his gratitude to the worthy guests for honoring the audience with their presence and enlightening them with their knowledge.
To deliver the concluding remarks, Sadik Yussuf Musse, the President of WISU, was called on the stage. Besides voicing his sincere gratefulness to the guests, Sadik Yussuf Musse recognized the significance of Sports Medicine in this modern world. He lamented upon the fact that many dreams remain unfulfilled due to injuries, and young athletes are not properly attended and treated due to lack of knowledge of sports medicine. However, he urged the sportsmen never to give up their dreams. To strengthen his point, he quoted world-class cyclist, Sir Bradley Wiggins: “Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”
The ceremony ended with the distribution of honorary certificates and shields to the guests, and of course with the group photo and a round of selfies.
Edited by:Wuhan University International Students’ Union
