World soccer governing body invites Dr Masoud for two elite meetings - By A Seshagiri Rao MUSCAT — Dr Masoud al Riyami, a well-known sports medicine expert and an orthopaedic surgeon, for long been a sole representative from the Sultanate who has been making notable contributions to Fifa’s research on sports medicine while also providing his voluntary services as a medical expert at various international level events of the world soccer’s governing body.
Fifa too has been recognising and appreciating the roles he has been playing over the years, first as a doping control officer and then one of the most responsible roles as a Medical Superintendent. It is vowing to his hard work and dedication that Fifa has been showing faith in this humble Omani doctor to fulfil the responsibility of not just as a doping control officer but as a Medical Superintendent at different World Cup tournaments while also involving him in research related to sports medicine.
And Fifa’s latest invitations to attend not one but two elite meetings, thanks once again to his dedication and commitment, comes as a new feather in Dr Masoud’s cap. The first meeting, to be held in Doha’s Aspetar Qatar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, will have a huge impact on the way the football and footballers are handled during the Holy Month of Ramadhan.
The inaugural International Consensus Meeting on Ramadhan and Football, scheduled for November 26 and 27, is being organised by Fifa Medical Assessment and Research Centre (F-MARC) where Dr Masoud will be presenting a paper on Omani experience during Ramadhan.
Explaining the objective of the meeting to the Observer, Dr Masoud said: “The idea of the meeting is to reach a consensus based on various studies made on the subject in different countries. The studies have been done on player endurance and performance during Ramadhan and we have to reach an agreement on what is good for the player based on these studies.”
Explaining further, he said: “Many studies have been done in different nations in the last few years. The results of our study in Oman were published in 2006 in Fifa publications and Journal of Sports Medicine. Parallel studies have been done in countries like Tunisia and Malaysia, where the climatic conditions are different.
“The Consensus Meeting in Qatar is an opportunity to put all these studies together and reach a consensus on the issue, and also find out what is good for the players and football during Ramadhan.”
“The outcome of this meeting will benefit not only the footballers in the countries like Oman but also some of the European countries where some players observe fasting during the busy football season,” added Dr Masoud referring to players like Mali’s Frederic Kanoute, the former West Ham United and Tottenham player who is currently plying his trade in Spain with Sevilla.
The second Fifa invitation for Dr Masoud is for Futuro III Course to be held in Riyadh.
The Omani doctor has been invited as a guest speaker at the elite course, which is scheduled for November 29-30.
Dr Masoud, who provided his services at many age group World Cup tournaments as well as 2010 Fifa World Cup South Africa, will be sharing his experiences with the participants of the Futuro III Course.
For the record, Dr Masoud has attended Under-23 World Cups in Abu Dhabi (2003) and Egypt (2009), Under-17 World Cup in Mexico (2011), Futsal World Cup in Brazil (2008).
He has also been at various regional and continental level tournaments like Gulf Cups (2003 Kuwait, and 2009 Oman) and AFC Asian Cups (2004 China, 2006 Vietnam and 2011 Qatar).
Asked how feels about representing Oman at events like World Cup, Dr Masoud, who is also a member of Fifa Sports Medical Committee and Chairman of the Oman Sports Medical Committee, said: “It’s a great experience to be able to work at such big events and ensure implementation of Fifa standards at all events.
He also admits as a Medical Superintendent it’s ‘a huge, huge responsibility.
The task of a Medical Superintendent is not restricted to the regular doping control but it involves even bigger responsibilities,
“A Medical Superintendent is mainly responsible for smooth running of VVIP and VIP clinics, the player clinics, the staff clinics, two or three spectators clinics depending on the level of the event and size of the facility. And not to forget the ambulance services inside and outside the arenas. Believe me it is a huge, huge responsibility.” “But every time it’s a great feeling too as my name is written and mentioned together with my country’s name.”
Following is the summary of the outcome of Dr Masoud al Riyami’s study on fasting footballers in Oman during Ramadhan: “Ramadhan is the month where Muslims abstain from food and liquids from sunrise to sunset. Football does not cease during Ramadhan. It is important to know how this period affects athletic performance. The study was conducted in Oman, a total of 25 players aged 18 to 25 years were tested for physical performance, subjective feelings, and biochemical changes, two weeks before, twice during and two weeks after Ramadhan. The lack of change in endurance over the first six weeks of regular training suggests that this period of the Muslim calendar might have no impact on performance for games contested during Ramadan.”
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