SUMMIT COUNTY, Colo. — Of all the Winter Olympic sports, Sonya Garrison says snowboard cross is often one of the most exciting – and one that can cause a lot of injuries.
“I call it a human bowling alley,” she said. “Four racers taking off from the top, lots of turns, jumps, bumps.”
Garrison would know. She’s a physical therapist at Howard Head Sports Medicine, which is attached to Vail Health Hospital, and travels with USA Snowboardcross to races all over the world.
> Video above: Team USA athletes begin arriving in Beijing for the Winter Olympics.
She watches athletes race head-to-head down snowy courses built with jumps and turns, and then she fixes Team USA athletes who get injured.
"If they crash, it can be anywhere from low back issues to lacerations to cuts,” Garrison said.
Lauren Rust is also a physical therapist with Howard Head Sports Medicine and travels with the U.S. Ski Team.
“I am traveling with the women’s technical team,” she said.
Both are in Beijing, working with Team USA at a Winter Olympics that started with a bunch of COVID-19 protocols before they left the U.S.
"We spend a few days in Los Angeles, making sure everyone tests negative," Rust said. "The COVID bubble starts in Los Angeles."
Once in Beijing, the work really starts, not only with staying healthy from COVID-19 but keeping elite athletes healthy during the biggest moment of their sporting career.
“We work until we fall on the ground,” Garrison said. “Until the last gate drops.”
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