Global Rescue supports the U.S. Ski and Snowboard teams in their Olympic preparations

This winter brings a high tempo of activity for the United States Ski and Snowboard Association as the elite winter athletes and coaches make final preparations for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, which start in February. One item on that long checklist is to ensure that medical emergency plans are in place not only for Vancouver, but also for the teams’ more remote training sites around the world. In addition, USSA is taking steps at home to better prepare slope-side medical staff for the specific cases they might face. Global Rescue will play a key role in all of those preparations.

The company’s critical-care trained paramedics and Global Rescue Chief Executive Officer Daniel Richards will speak at the Medical Emergencies in Skiing and Snowboarding (MESS) clinic next month, hosted by USSA at Beaver Creek in Colorado. The purpose of the clinic is to train ski team physicians in on-slope traumatic emergencies and medical conditions that commonly affect elite winter athletes. The lessons from the classroom will then be put into practice on Beaver Creek’s downhill course. The medical staff will be expected to possess advanced skiing and snowboarding skills.

As the ski team takes its aerialists to China for a competition in Changchun next month, Global Rescue will once again plan its medical evacuation coverage for athletes and staff in case of emergency. Last year the same freestyle events concluded, fortunately, without incident.