Effort and Science to Win

Winning nowadays is not only a question of disciplined training: The triumph of victory today involves the collaboration of several medical specialists who combine their particular knowledge in an effort to help each athlete to reach their potential. In Mexico, the Medicine Direction and .Applied Sciences of the National Commission of Deporte analyses all aspects of sports science from the role of the auditory system in sporting achievement to die power of the mind and its role in the ability to win. Everything, it seems, is open to scrutiny. Recently, the focus has been evaluating the visual acuity of cyclists and long distance runners but they also focus on the more traditional areas of sports research, among them psychology, nutrition, anthropology, biochemistry and odontology1. From budding child athletes as young as 9 to the more mature-aged sportsperson, the facility at Deporte has attracted some of Mexico’s most famous sporting and Olympic hopefuls. “The study of elite athletes is now more scientific than ever” says doctor Francisco Javier Squares, “after each competition, athletes are exposed to vigorous medical examinations and follow-up training in order to help US arrive at a program that is tailor-made. “The modern athlete has become big business, no longer is there a one-size-fits-all approach. For example, in the past two people both 1.70 meters tall and weighing 70 kilograms would have been given the same program of athletic conditioning – now this idea is obsolete. It may be that the first individual has 35 kgs of muscle and 15 kgs of fat and the other…