• The “Sport of Life” initiative aims to promote awareness about sports injuries and provide treatment for sportspeople. As a part of this initiative, Healthium will aid in the treatment of sports injuries with free arthroscopy implants.

• Bhaichung Bhutia, torchbearer of Indian Football in the international arena, Abhinav Bindra, India’s first Individual Olympic gold medalist and Founder, ABFT, Arumugam S, Director, Centre for Sports Science (CSS), and Anish Bafna, CEO & MD Healthium Medtech inaugurated the initiative.
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Healthium Medtech, a global medtech company, today inaugurated the ‘Sport of Life’ initiative, with Abhinav Bindra Foundation Trust (ABFT). ABFT aims to support injured players in need with the cost of medical treatment, doctors, surgeries and rehabilitation facilities to recover from sport injuries and carry on with their career. Healthium will provide its arthroscopy implants required for the surgeries free of cost.

In sports, players often face injuries during their career. Some of them are minor niggles while others could be critical enough to be career threatening. For some players, the sport is the only way of sustaining themselves and their families. Such sportsmen often cannot afford to bear the cost of treatment of injuries. With ‘Sport of Life’, such needy players have an opportunity to recover from injuries with the support of ABFT and Healthium.

According to an Injury Surveillance Report by NCA last year, 14.75 % of players sustained shoulder injuries, 13.11% of players sustained knee injuries and almost 74 % players suffer from career-threatening Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries in the 1^st two years of return to sport.

Healthium has created over 300 SKUs for knee and shoulder procedures, designed and developed in-house, backed by 50+ patents applied and granted in U.S and India. This “Make in India, for the world” portfolio offers a wide range of implants and equipment to treat soft tissue conditions in the shoulders and knees such as anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, posterior cruciate ligament injuries, other ligament repair & reconstruction and meniscal repair, so that despite injuries the ‘Sport of Life’ does not stop.

The “Sport of Life’ initiative was inaugurated by renowned dignitaries that included Shree Bhaichung Bhutia, torchbearer of Indian Football in the international arena, Shree Abhinav Bindra, India’s 1^st individual Olympic gold medallist, & Founder of Abhinav Bindra Foundation Trust, Prof. Arumugam. S, Director, Centre for Sports Science (CSS) and Head – Department of Arthroscopy & Sports Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education & Research (SRIHER), Shree Anish Bafna from Healthium and the representatives of ABFT.

Commenting on the launch of the programme, Anish Bafna, CEO and MD, Healthium Medtech, said, “We are excited to be part of the “Sport of Life” Initiative and commit to the betterment and well- being of sportspeople in India. At Healthium, we aspire to touch lives with our patented arthroscopy range “Sironix”, designed and developed in-house, which holds over 50 patents in U.S and India. We are delighted with our strategic collaboration with Abhinav Bindra Foundation Trust (ABFT) and are happy to play a part in helping sports people with injuries and hope to make a positive impact in the lives of young sportspeople of our nation. We remain thankful to Shree Bhaichung Bhutia and Shree Abhinav Bindra for actively encouraging sports people to seek treatment in a timely manner and supporting the “Sport of life” initiative.

Speaking at the launch of the initiative, Abhinav Bindra, Founder, Abhinav Bindra Foundation Trust added, “Making sure the sport of life does not stop, by supporting players in need, is of paramount importance in sports today, as they represent our nation. “Sport of Life” aims to help sports people in need pan India with treatment and rehabilitation facilities at their home locations so that they can remain active in sport. We are delighted to join hands with Healthium- a company committed to the directives of Atmanirbhar Bharat and to the development of sports in India for being a part of this initiative. We look forward to impacting the lives of 100 sportspeople in need within an year of this initiative.”

Bhaichung Bhutia, torchbearer of Indian Football in the international arena said, “When you represent your country by playing sports long enough, the potential for sustaining an injury is a reality of the game. I thank ABFT and Healthium for being at the forefront with “Sport of Life” that gives players in need a fighting chance to get treated and come back actively into sports careers.”

Prof. Arumugam S, Director, Centre for Sports Science (CSS) and Head – Department of Arthroscopy & Sports Medicine, (SRIHER) said, “Sportspeople are particularly susceptible to injuries, which can be career-ending if not addressed promptly. In the event of a significant injury, the athlete will require the assistance of an experienced orthopaedic surgeon in order to return to their favourite sport. Orthopaedic surgeons today have the expertise and techniques to help athletes of all ages overcome the effects of sports injuries, thanks to advances in contemporary medicine and science. Arthroscopy can now be performed using minimally invasive techniques, allowing relatively quick recovery. However, in many parts of India, the lack of rehabilitation facilities for sports injuries has become a significant source of worry. With the rollout of ABFT and Healthium’s ‘Sport of Life’ initiative, we hope to support and provide the best in treatment to young athletes in need, across tier II and III cities. It gives me great pleasure to be a part of this initiative and help athletes who require such interventions recover safely and avoid re-injury when they return to their sport.“