22 June 2016 Doctor to rub shoulders with Kiwi rugby elites

An orthopaedic surgeon who works with Japan’s under-20 rugby team has come to Lincoln University to get more experience working with professional rugby players.

Sohei Takamori is receiving funding from his employer, the Yokohama Minami Kyousai Hospital/Sports Medicine Centre, to work at Lincoln for two years.

Rugby’s popularity is on the upswing in Japan, with the country hosting the 2019 Rugby World Cup and Rugby Sevens being included in the line-up of events at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“This is a good time for me to increase my exposure to professional players,” Dr Takamori says.

During his time at Lincoln University, he will conduct sports research, work alongside Lincoln’s rugby team, and connect with Crusaders medical staff.

Lincoln University sports science Associate Professor Mike Hamlin says it’s “a win-win situation”.

“The Lincoln players will benefit from Dr Takamori’s sideline care, and being immersed in the club with so many elite players will be invaluable experience for Dr Takamori.

“The Lincoln coach, John Haggart, was previously assistant coach of the Canterbury NPC team and is now manager of the International High Performance Academy for the Crusaders.

“One of our goals is to get Dr Takamori involved with the Crusaders too, and connect him with their medical staff.

“It’s great to have him here, as he can link a lot of different groups involved in rugby, including the Lincoln Recreation Centre, the Crusaders, and researchers.”

Dr Takamori will also be involved in two research projects at Lincoln University.

The first relates to preventing concussion amongst rugby players and the second is on recovery after surgery.

“Concussion is a big problem for elite rugby teams,” says Associate Professor Hamlin. “A lot of money goes into prevention and treatment. The research will involve working out how to prevent concussion by investigating different tackle techniques and body positions.”

Associate Professor Hamlin says Dr Takamori will review footage of Crusaders Super rugby games and identify the variables likely to have caused concussion in players, such as tackle position, head position and the playing surface.

Dr Takamori and Associate Professor Hamlin will also work on a joint project with University of Canterbury Associate Professor Steven Gieseg, investigating the effects of different post-surgery recovery techniques on healing and return of function.

Dr Takamori became particularly interested in Super Rugby when he went to Australia for three weeks in 2014 to work with the junior Japanese national team.

“Then I met Kim Brown, the director of rugby for the Lincoln University Rugby Club, who visited Japan and suggested that I come to Lincoln.”