LIFE Serves at U.S. Oylmpic Track & Field Trials

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MARIETTA, GA. July 30, 2012. Four Life University chiropractic sport science students recently traveled to famed Hayward Field in Eugene, OR., to assist Olympic hopefuls competing in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials in Track and Field (held June 21 through July 1).

lifeoringsStudents Oscar Adorno-Bruno (31), Gregory Busby (25), Michael Drzewieki (25) and Brandon Williams (29), who are dually enrolled in the Doctor of Chiropractic and Master of Sport Health Science programs, were responsible for staffing the Chiropractic and Massage station check-in in six-day shifts, facilitating athletes’ visits with care providers and occasionally assisting care providers with stretching protocols. They were accompanied by Sport Health Science associate professor Dr. Keith Rau. Rau, a licensed chiropractor who also served as a care provider during the 2010 U.S. National Championships and also during this event, received the invitation from event organizers in January and co-administered the application and selection process naming the four student volunteers.

Says Rau, “This was an incredible opportunity for deserving students to assist some of the world’s greatest athletes in what is arguably the preeminent track and field facility in the country, and to interact with and learn from the top sports chiropractors in the nation – doctors who are leading the field these students will enter.” The experience was structured as a for-credit course, and students accordingly collected data on chiropractic utilization by the athletes for a potential American Chiropractic Association Sports Council abstract entry.

Though the data has not yet been collated, Rau noted that the services in the Chiropractic and Massage station were far more utilized by athletes and their support teams than were the services available in the Medical tent – “sometimes 20 times more each day,” he says. Considering the popularity of chiropractic and massage care at the event, as well as the positive feedback Rau and the students received from athletic participants and care providers alike, it is clear that Life University and sport chiropractic are a welcome presence at the trials.

“This is the first time we’ve ever had a presence at that level of competition,” Rau says. “Combined with the number of [Life University] D.C. alumni who were there rendering care, we represented the school well. Our students were perceived as professional, hardworking, energetic and eager to learn. I see this as a bridge-building opportunity, connecting Life University with athletes, sports chiropractors and sports chiropractic organizations from all over the country.”

For more information about Life University’s Chiropractic Sport Science concentration within the Masters in Sport Health Science program, please contact Keith Rau, Associate Professor, at [email protected]; 770-426-2771.

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About Life University

Founded in Marietta, Georgia in 1974, Life University is a health sciences institution most known for its chiropractic program, the largest in the world. Life University is regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award four-year undergraduate and graduate degrees in a variety of health care, science, business and general studies fields, and also has programmatic accreditation through the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE) and the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND). The mission of Life University is to empower students with the education, skills and values necessary for career success and life fulfillment, based on a vitalistic philosophy.

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