Asia is quickly turning into a world leading ski resort destination. Japan has always been on the radar for powder hounds but with the 2018 Winter Olympics in Korea and 2022 Olympics in China, Asia is building more world class ski resorts than ever before. There are currently 568 ski resorts operating across the mainland and it is estimated this will rise to more than a 1000 by 2022. This opens up further short haul options for ski bunnies in Hong Kong.
Hamish Dickie, is a physiotherapist at Hong Kong Sports Clinic and arrived to Hong Kong from beautiful resort town of Queenstown, New Zealand. He was a part of the New Zealand medical team at the 2018 Olympics in Korea. In this article Hamish will share his insights to how you can make you and your family’s ski holiday more enjoyable but most importantly injury free!
How do injuries occur and what are the most common?
A recent study conducted over 5 years discovered the majority of injures happened via falls which accounted for 74% of all injuries, followed by collisions (9%) and jumps (5%). The most common injuries were to the knee (36%), followed by the back (18%), wrist (14%), head (11%), shoulder (11%), ankle (6%) and collar bone (4%).
How do we prevent injuries?
Appropriate screening
Hamish works with 15 athletes who are in the Park and Pipe high performance program and regularly tours with the group to North America, Europe and parts of Asia. The high risk, high demand sports meant the group of athletes lost 840 days of training and competition to injury last year. Every athlete undertakes regular risk analysis where athletes are scored on a number of categories including neuromuscular control, strength and landing patterns just to name a few. Hamish can personally take you through these screening profiles so an appropriate individualized program can be developed specifically for your needs.
Strength and Conditioning
Obviously the stronger and fitter you are the less likely fatigue will play a part in your injury. Skiing and snowboarding have specific physical demands and movements and the team at Hong Kong Sports Clinic can help you with a strength and conditioning program to meet these demands.
Previous injury
The biggest predictor of injury is previous injury. Therefore if have an old niggling injury come in and get it sorted out by the staff at Hong Kong Sports Clinic before you head away on holiday. Comprehensive rehabilitation of injuries is the cornerstone of staying injury free while away.
Finally – have fun! As the options for us in Hong Kong continue to grow for short haul ski options, enjoy the wonderful new terrain and environments on offer.
