Fortunately for them, they have a whole staff of physicians and practitioners taking care of them and keeping them in peak performing condition — including acupuncturists.

Acupuncture, acupressure and cupping already have a long history of helping Olympic athletes reach the best possible conditioning pre-Olympics and pre-event, as well as helping them recover faster and feel better following rugged competition.

As described in the AP article, Athletes in Nagano Using Acupuncture to Cure Their Ills, Canadian speedskater Kevin Overland used acupuncture to recover from an injured hip and went home with a bronze medal. Hockey superstar Jaromir Jagr was able to overcome chronic groin injuries in time to represent the Czech Republic in Japan. The list goes on and on.

Athletes utilizing acupuncture recover from soreness and fatigue faster, feel stronger, are less emotionally stressed and feel more balanced, just to name a few benefits. Focus and balance (both energetically and physically) are as important and physical performance in so many Olympic sports.

Acupuncture & The Beijing Olympic Games

Chinese Olympic swimmer Wang Qun warms up for a race following a cupping treatment.

Acupuncture was highlighted prominently during NBC’s coverage of the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing. That was in part because of how totally integrated sports medicine and acupuncture are for that host nation and in part because acupuncture was offered free to athletes and officials in the Olympic Village throughout the Games.

NBC’s Olympic coverage that summer also featured the well-documented story of New York Times reporter James Reston, who in 1971 was in China for President Nixon’s famous trip and while there needed an emergency appendectomy. For his post-operative pain he received acupuncture rather than intense painkillers, which was a revelation for Reston in its approach and effectiveness. Once Reston returned to the States, he wrote in The Times about his experiences, and that reporting became one of the primary gateways for acupuncture into Western society.

Now the presence of acupuncture is being felt across Canada as part of host Vancouver’s Winter Games. Photos are popping up on Flickr and articles are being written for local and national publications with athletes raving about the benefits of acupuncture treatments. Let’s hope that “The True North Strong and Free” is feeling the positive effects of acupuncture long after the Games leave.