NSC’s physiotherapy seminar signals new era of athlete-centred sports development in Guyana

Feb 28, 2026 Sports

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Kaieteur Sports – The National Sports Commission’s (NSC) one-day physiotherapy seminar was hailed as an important occasion by Director of Sport, Steve Ninvalle, and the Ministry of Health’s Director of Rehabilitation and Disability Services, Dr Ariane Mangar, as they underscored the growing emphasis on athlete welfare and holistic sports development in Guyana.

The programme, held yesterday at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, brought together coaches and officials from the country’s national federations and associations for an intensive day of learning and professional development.

The initiative forms part of the NSC’s broader strategy to strengthen technical capacity within local sporting bodies and to ensure that athlete health remains central to performance goals.

The seminar featured a panel of experienced local physiotherapists and sports medicine practitioners, including Vanessa Wickham, Jana Edghill, Angelica Holder, Neil Barry, and Kelly Coonjah.

Each presenter focused on critical areas ranging from injury prevention to safe return-to-play protocols, providing both theoretical knowledge and practical applications tailored to Guyana’s sporting landscape.

Ninvalle, addressing the gathering to commence the day’s activities, pointed out that the NSC began the year with a similar event in collaboration with the Epilepsy Foundation of Guyana.

He further noted, “It underlines just how much the Ministry, the National Sports Commission, and Government, is pushing to, what I would want to say, decentralize how we think about the development of sport.”

“In my memory, I cannot remember us as a sports commission or ministry of culture and Sport, having such an engagement. And this will not be the last of such,” the Director of Sport pointed out, while revealing that the NSC will also host a programme in sports psychology.

“And this is part and parcel of us having a holistic approach towards the development of sport. It can only be in a win-win situation here,” Ninvalle said, as he encouraged participants to “grasp as much information as you can and make sure that you disseminate this to your federations and to your executives,” Ninvalle said.

Meanwhile, Dr Mangar, in welcoming participants, highlighted that athletes in Guyana are offered free therapy at the Sports Clinic located at the National Aquatic Centre.

She emphasized the importance of collaboration between medical professionals and sporting bodies, pointing out, “We have a great partnership going, and with this, we decided let’s have a series of lectures or talks with coaches or educational sessions to help to build your capacity so that we can make our work a little easier so you understand where we’re coming from as we go ahead.”

“Today we’re starting with a health physiotherapy seminar, and then we’ll move on to one called the female athlete where we look at syncing your training with the athlete’s menstrual cycle and so forth as we go ahead,” Dr Mangar said.

The seminar covered a wide cross-section of practical topics, including injury prevention and load management, mechanisms of injury linked to coaching decisions, acute injury management, concussion recognition, heat illness prevention in tropical environments, hydration strategies, structured warm-up and cool-down protocols, and strength and conditioning for injury resilience.

Additional sessions examined youth athlete considerations, injury tracking systems, and criteria-based return-to-play frameworks.

Wickham addressed sports medicine team dynamics, injury patterns, and International Olympic Committee injury prevention protocols, setting the foundation for understanding how coaching decisions influence athlete health outcomes.

Edghill focused on acute injury response, concussion management, and heat-related illnesses—an especially relevant topic in Guyana’s climate, while Holder stressed on the importance of proper warm-up and recovery strategies.

Barry’s presentation centred on strength and conditioning principles for both performance enhancement and injury prevention, with Coonjah concluding the seminar by outlining safe return-to-play systems and best practices for youth athlete development.

Both Ninvalle and Dr Mangar believe the seminar will contribute significantly to reducing injury incidence, preventing reinjury, and improving performance sustainability nationwide.

Beyond the technical knowledge shared, the initiative reflects a broader national commitment to athlete-centred sport development, reinforcing the message that safeguarding athlete health is fundamental to long-term sporting success.

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• Cristy Campbell, NSC, physiotherapy seminar, Steve Ninvalle

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