The International Athlete: Travelling Healthy to Global Sporting Events

[Extract] The contemporary athlete is a global traveller [1]. The 2004 Summer Olympie and Paralympic Games in Athens attracted an estimated 25,000 athletes and support staff from 201 countries and serves as good example of the interest highprofile international sports receive [2]. Even lower-profile recreational sports such as marathons, triathalons and golf are attracting more and more athletes willing to travellong distances to compete [3]. Depending on the sport, these competitions range in duration from one day to several weeks and often represent the ultimate challenge for participating athletes. However, a fact that is often overlooked is that the nature of international travel poses obstacles to the health, safety and maximum performance of athletes.