Chatham United will hold an ACL Injury Prevention Clinic for all CU Trainers and Parent Managers on August 28th. The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of four ligaments that provide stability to the knee joint. Of these ligaments, the ACL is the one most commonly injured. The majority of ACL repairs that occur each year are done on young athletes (under age 25) and female athletes. In fact, some studies point to a female soccer player being eight times more likely to injure her ACL than her male counterpart.
The ACL Injury Prevention Clinic will focus on helping Trainers and Parent Managers identify factors that lead to injury. The program will institute a proper dynamic warm-up that includes strength, power and balance training, all essential skills for the prevention of ACL injury. “Adoloescent athletes are often trained in high level sports specific skills, but lack fundamental stability and mobility. Our program will give the coaches important tools to develop athletes who will have the strength and form to handle higher levels of competition,“ explains Margaret Haughey, PT, ATC, who will be instructing the course.
“As a former college player who sustained double ACL injuries and surgeries, I understand first hand the importance of this training for all our athletes”, says Dorina Martirano, Director of Coaching for Chatham United. Martirano also plans to continue this program with Ms. Haughey throughout the Winter, focusing on power development through plyometric training.
