Friday , March 29 2024

Chennai City FC players utilise Abhinav Bindra Targeting Performance Centre!

A giant eight-foot chamber, just about large enough to fit one person opens up. The interiors are red, and the exterior blue – giving one the impression that it is hot inside, and cool outside.

The chamber itself is quite on the contrary, however.

As I-League Emerging Player of the Season Gaurav Bora enters the chamber, quite inquisitive, his Chennai City FC teammates look on with excitement from behind. Some have their mobile cameras switched on to the video mode, while others make random cat-calls at the 20-year-old.

Bora is completely engulfed inside once the chamber is closed, but a platform soon rises inside, so that his head is the only thing that protrudes outside the vertical instrument; then begins the smoky show.

Thick smoke starts oozing out of the machine and the player’s face grimaces. “I don’t know which is better — this, or the ice bath,” says Bora later.

“Your body is being subjected to minus 150 degrees Celcius right now,” informs Dr. Kartik Doshi, over the whirring of the machine.

One by one, all the players try the Cryo therapy at the Abhinav Bindra Targeting Performance Centre, at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.

The centre is another feather in the cap of the Government of Odisha, all in their effort to build awareness for a sporting culture among all. The land, and the building of the infra, have both all been funded by the Government.

“The CryoSpace is essentially a recovery machine, that helps an athletes’ muscle tissues recover faster, without much side-effects to the body,” said Dr. Doshi, who heads the Abhinav Bindra Targeting Performance Centre in Bhubaneswar.

Currently, there are three other such centres – in Chandigarh, Delhi and Bangalore.

“We have found that this particular machine is much more effective than the usual ice-bath that is used for recovery sessions after a rigorous training or a match,” Dr Doshi explained.

“In fact, an athlete heals much faster with the help of this device and can even play a match in the morning, have a CryoSpace session, and then play another in the evening as well.”

Chennai City FC physio M Sudhakar also believes that his team’s recovery process has improved, here at the Kalinga Stadium, as they are using CryoSpace, instead of ice-baths.

“Ice-baths can lead to different problems, as it directly affects the muscle and the skin. But CryoSpace does not do that. Just three-five minutes inside are enough to heal minor bruises,” he said. “Also, certain players don’t like the ice-bath, but most of them have no complaints about the CryoSpace, as they only have to stay inside for three minutes.”

Dr Doshi further went on to explain that ice-baths can, in certain cases, lead to hypothermia, which is not ideal for athletes. However, the CryoSpace uses liquid nitrogen to give an athlete’s brain the sensation that his or her body is going to enter freezing conditions, thereby manipulating the brain to divert the blood in the peripheral parts of the body (hands and legs) to the vital organs.

“Here, the blood takes up more oxygen, and other vital nutrients. Once the athlete comes out of the chamber after a three-minute session, the body resumes normal functions, and the oxygen and nutrient-rich blood is circulated back to the peripheral organs, thereby healing the wounded muscle tissues faster, and in a more effective manner.”

“I feel much more relaxed right now,” said Chennai City’s mercurial striker Pedro Manzi after coming out of the CryoSpace. “I had a few sore muscles after the last training session, but I now feel completely refreshed.”

While this was but one of the equipment used to aid a player’s recovery process, the ABTP Centre also has other devices that help them improve their performance on the pitch. Two such key devices are the Static Prokin, and the Dynamic Prokin, that help the athletes improve their balance, both while standing still, and while moving.

“It is quite self-explanatory why a footballer needs to improve his or her balance while moving. The average player needs to make a range of movements during a match, and a better balance will only help them improve their key functions,” said Dr Doshi.

However, improving the static balance could be key for certain players who ply their trade in a particular position. For example, a goalkeeper needs to improve his static balance, especially for saving penalties.

“The Static Prokin would help goalkeepers go from a static to a dynamic state in a more effective manner, thus giving him or her those few extra nano-seconds, in which he can figure out which way the striker will shoot, and leap in the required direction,” stated Dr Doshi.

These are but some of the equipment present at the ABTP Centre at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, which can help athletes improve their performance, and perhaps get better results in National and International tournaments.

“The Centre we have here is one of the best in India, and it has facilities which professional athletes can avail. Professional athletes or their sponsors often end up spending a lot more in sending them abroad to use the same kind of machinery,” said Dr Doshi. “Now, we have all the facilities in our own country across four different cities. This will only help athletes from our country get better at their respective disciplines.”

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