Local doctor joins U.S. Olympic team

METROWEST  The stories of Olympic dreams on the networks of NBC Universal every two years tend to focus on athletes who ground through countless hours of training for their particular sport, having to prove themselves as one of the best at their skill among a nation of more than 300 million people to earn a chance at becoming the best in the world.

Focus can often shift to coaches and family, but behind the scenes are teams of some of the nation's greatest support staff, without whom not even qualifying would be possible.

Chief among these staffs are the medical professionals who ensure athletes are in peak health, such as MetroWest chiropractor Dr. Rhode G. Mesidor.

That's right – Mesidor is going with Team USA to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a dream come true to practice her skill at the most international athletics gathering on Earth.

“When they did the Olympic Games in London, I was like, 'Man, how cool would it be to be one of the doctors taking care of those athletes?'” Mesidor said. “I put it on my vision board, actually. I was like, 'You know what – next time they have the Olympics, I'm going to be one of the doctors that takes care of them.' And I kind of threw it out there, but I was kind of like, 'Eh, you know, it's a long shot.'”

Mesidor said she held that mentality throughout a process of two interviews, thinking she was likely too young to be picked for a team of 50 from among 500 doctors. She learned later she will work for USA Wrestling and some USA Track & Field runners, including some athletes she has been familiar with via Clermont's National Training Center, she said.

To enhance her chances and knowledge, she said she has continued scouring for seminars, articles and even online broadcasts for the latest techniques and information.

“For a lot of them that are competing, you have to make sure to get lactic acid out of their system,” Mesidor said. “For the London Olympics, I just stayed up on extremity adjusting, making sure that I could do anything that was related to helping the back, spine or nervous system function correct and heal better, because that's what controls functions as a whole.”

Alternative treatments will be important to have in mind, because Brazil will not have every tool that would be available for athletes in the U.S., she said.

“Athletes are so hard on their bodies that their bodies are more prone to injury, and if you're an athlete, everyone's competing; everyone's training; everyone's going through preliminaries – you want your body to repair as soon as possible,” Mesidor said “If you can't actually use physical therapy or an MRI right away, you have to know other ways to really address that problem, stabilize them and get them to a point where they can continue to compete. That's where a lot of people get hurt; they don't make it all the way through because of injury.”

Beyond her time caring for athletes, Mesidor hopes to gain understanding of the myriad countries' cultures and witness the majesty of Brazil, she said. She also wants to see more behind-the-scenes work of athletes and others during trials and events that are not televised.

“I'm excited about … seeing all the different countries and how they approach things differently,” she said. “I think it's going to be cool because we live in an American bubble, and that's all we see here and think about. But I'll get to see all the different countries do their thing.”

Mesidor will begin her journey with 22 hours of flying, including layovers, on Aug. 15. She said her return flight would begin on Aug. 23, but she would not get home until Aug. 24.

“I am hoping I can be back in my office (Aug.) 24,” she said. “If I get in early enough, I want to be there, because I'm not going to miss seeing my patients.”

But nothing can replace a dream come true, and even before 2012, Mesidor said she had been wondering how she would be able to apply her skills to Team USA. She had talked with and listened to seminars of doctors who had been to the Olympics, even when she was in school. She said they helped to teach her it was not just about treating athletes, but learning from other top practitioners and taking knowledge home to care for everyday patients at that same Olympic level.

Contact Zak Kerr at [email protected].