In this context I shall limit the term "team doctor" to one sportin this case my own sport of athleticsand not to all sports as is the position of our Olympic team doctor Raymond Owen.Having said ONE sport I shall now contradict myself by saying that athletics is really several different activities under one administrative banner. The marathon runner, the pole vaulter and the hammer thrower have relatively little in common except that they travel as members of the same team. Add the racewalker, the sprinter, the hurdler, the steeplechaser and all the other diverse activities that go up to make an athletics team and we get some measure of the complexity of the task that faces the team doctor. He is in the same position as a team coach and, ideally, should understand the technical requirements of each event.Although most international teams might like to have a full time medical officer on a long term appointment, in practice only Russian athletics appear to enjoy this facility. Indeed, I understand from Gavril Korokov, their senior coach, that they now have a psychologist to travel with the team. It is interesting to note, incidentally, that all Russian textbooks always advise an athlete to consult both his coach and his doctor. The implication is, of course, that every athlete has both. On the other hand,
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