TOM YAWNEY
SPORTS REPORTER

A member of Humber’s athletic therapy staff will offer his medical expertise to Olympic athletes in Vancouver.
Dr. Hemen Shukla, a sports medicine physician at Humber, will work at the curling venue, the Vancouver Olympic Centre.
“I sent in my application about a year ago and I found out I was going a few months back,” Shukla said.
“This is the biggest event in the world and if you love sports like I do, it’s so cool to be a part of it,” Shukla said.
Staff members at the Humber athletic centre are excited to have a colleague working at an event of such magnitude.
“Dr. Shukla is a phenomenal doctor and he definitely deserves this accolade, we’re lucky to have him at Humber,” said athletic therapist Jennifer Bell.
The Vancouver Olympic Committee recruited volunteer athletic therapists, doctors and professionals who specialize in sports medicine.
There are hundreds of applications to be a volunteer doctor at the Olympics and Shukla has been assigned the position of host doctor.
“The host doctors provide services for everybody from athletes to spectators and work with athletes from countries that don’t bring doctors with them,” Shukla said.
“Mostly I will be at the curling venue in charge of spectator care.”
However the Olympic experience requires sacrifice and does not come cheap.
Host doctors are not paid and must find their own accommodation.
“The provided rooms are very limited, luckily I have some friends that I’m staying with,” Shukla said.
Shukla has to pay for his own flight and will miss two weeks of pay.
“You have to decide if it’s worth it for you, and for me it absolutely was,” Shukla said.
“This is a great chance to meet new people and enjoy all the concerts and programs the Olympics have to offer.”
Shukla’s inclusion in the Olympics affirms the quality of doctor available at Humber, said Humber sports information director, Jim Bialek.
“Dr. Shukla being a part of the Olympic team is a testament to the level of care that Humber offers its athletes.”