LOCAL FOOTBALL coaches benefitted from extensive knowledge on sports nutrition and exercise science, in the field of football, at the second International Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI), which was staged at Calypso Room, Radisson Hotel, Port-of-Spain yesterday.
The symposium, held in conjunction with local Gatorade distributors VEMCO, was staged under the theme “The Science and Practice of Football”.
Attendees at the event included coaches, physiotherapists and technical directors of professional and secondary school football clubs from all corners of the twin-island republic.
The GSSI experts provided educational information to the audience, to help them in enhancing the performance and well-being of their athletes.
The presenters at the event included Dr Nicky Kirk of Scotland, Dr Matthew Pahnke of the United States, Dr Dwight Santiago of Puerto Rico and Pedro Garcia of Venezuela, while Trinidad and Tobago football team goalkeeper Jan-Michael Williams was a specially-invited guest.
James Robertson, marketing manager of VEMCO Limited, mentioned, “Gatorade takes pride in executing programmes such as GSSI, because of the intrinsic value they have for the nation as a whole.
“Last year, stakeholders in running were given an advantage with the insight they gained from the experts,” he added.
“This year, we thought football would be the appropriate sport to take the forefront for GSSI. It is our privilege to assist in improving the sport by imparting the knowledge of expert scientists to those who practice it.” Founded in 1985, GSSI is committed to helping athletes optimise their health and performance through research and education in hydration and nutrition science. GSSI scientists study the effects of nutrition on the human body before, during and after exercise.
For over 20 years, hundreds of amateur, elite and professional athletes have participated in testing with GSSI and in studies with university research partners around the globe.