New Delhi: While Indian athletes are vying for medals at the ongoing Commonwealth Games, an equally important competition is taking place under the spotlight. Behind every event, the Indian Olympic Association’s (IOA) medical team works around the clock to ensure that athletes stay healthy, recover quickly and remain competition-ready during the grueling schedule.Led by renowned plastic surgeon Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, the IOA medical team has been working since the contingent arrived in Scotland. Assisted by physiotherapists Sumansh Sivalanka, Chris Pedra and Debashish Das, the team is responsible for interdisciplinary injury management, physiotherapy, recovery protocols and rehabilitation.“It has been a wonderful journey as my team including Sumansh Sivalanka, Chris Pedra and Debashish Das worked with the athletes even before the Olympics started.
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For me personally, it feels reassuring when the team manager comes to me and tells me that our presence is reassuring and adds value,” said Dr. Padivala.This task is made even more challenging by the absence of a central athletes village in Glasgow in 2026. With the Indian delegation spread across three hotels, the Indian Olympic Committee has set up a main treatment center at the Mercure Hotel while medical staff have been deployed at all team bases to ensure athletes have immediate access to care when needed.The medical team also provides services to smaller teams such as swimming and gymnastics, which do not have dedicated doctors or physiotherapists with them. The larger teams, including track and field, have their own medical staff but continue to coordinate with the IOC’s central support system.For athletes competing on multiple days, recovery is just as important as training. Physical therapy sessions, mobility training and rehabilitation programs are designed to minimize the risk of injury while helping competitors maintain peak performance.“The greatest satisfaction is seeing the smile on an athlete’s face after a hard day’s work,” Dr. Padivala said.While medals will dominate the headlines in the coming days, every podium finish is also thanks to the doctors, physiotherapists and support staff whose work begins before an athlete steps onto the field and often continues long after the event is over.For the IOA, the goal is not just to win medals – to ensure that every Indian athlete competes knowing that there is a dedicated support team steadfastly behind them.
