The fifteenth edition of the IOC Advanced Team Physician Course has begun at CONI’s ‘Giulio Onesti’ Olympic Preparation Centre. The global elite of sports medicine has gathered in Rome for this event, recognised by the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education and aimed at physicians of high-level teams from national Olympic committees and international federations. The course features interactive lectures by highly experienced doctors, academics, and specialists, discussing the main clinical cases encountered worldwide.

In the Aula Magna of Acqua Acetosa, Roald Bahr, President of the IOC Scientific Committee, opened the event: “We are in the centre where champions are trained, where Italian athletes prepared for the Paris 2024 Olympics, winning 40 medals. We are delighted to hold an event here that has travelled the world since 2008. Our goal has always been to help the best doctors take care of the best athletes”. Richard Budgett, IOC Medical and Scientific Director since 2012, added: “I would like to particularly thank CONI and President Giovanni Malagò. This is a special event in a special place. Here, the best are trained, and the significance increases considering that the next edition of the Olympic Games, the 2026 Winter Games, will take place in Italy.” Jane Thornton, who will succeed Richard Budgett in December, said: “Passion and commitment have made it possible once again to organise this splendid meeting. It is a fantastic tradition that continues under the banner of quality: at the centre is the athlete and their well-being”.

At this point, CONI President Giovanni Malagò (photo Gobbi GMT) took the floor: “Welcome to the fifteenth edition of the IOC Advanced Team Physician Course. I represent CONI, I am an IOC member, but above all, I am personally honoured to be here with the global elite of sports medicine. I am sure you will enjoy this centre with its unique atmosphere, named after Giulio Onesti, who was a very important President of the Italian National Olympic Committee. After the Second World War, this centre was founded to support athletes in preparation for the Rome 1960 Games: there are ideal venues for all sports, and it is home to many athletes cared for by our Olympic Preparation team. With Paris 2024 behind us, an Olympics where we achieved the best medal tally in Italy’s history, it is now time to prepare for Milano Cortina 2026.” The ‘Giulio Onesti’ Olympic Preparation Centre is also home to the CONI Institute of Sports Medicine and Science. “The Institute,” added Malagò, “represents excellence in our country. Elite specialists for elite athletes”.

The IOC Advanced Team Physician Course will continue until the afternoon of Thursday, 24 October. Among the speakers is Professor Andrea Ferretti, Medical Director of the CONI Institute of Sports Medicine and Science, who on Wednesday afternoon will present “five lessons learned as a team physician”.

But that’s not all. On Friday 25 and Saturday 26, the thirteenth edition of the IOC Course on Cardiovascular Evaluation of Olympic Athletes will take place, returning to ‘Giulio Onesti’ after six years. Among the speakers from the IMSS will be Dr Maria Rosaria Squeo, Head of Medical Services for the Olympic Area, the Institute’s cardiology specialists – Professor Antonio Pelliccia, Dr Viviana Maestrini, Dr Giuseppe Di Gioia, and Drs Federica Mango and Sara Monosilio – and Dr Erika Lemme, a specialist in sports medicine.

Also on 25 and 26, the first edition of the IOC Course on Respiratory Care of Olympic Athletes will be held: representing the CONI Institute of Sports Medicine and Science will be Professor Paolo Palange, a specialist in pulmonology.