It is a department nestled in the heart of the Dax hospital, which is generally visited on the recommendation of your doctor or cardiologist, to carry out a stress test. The sports medicine department was created in September 2000, thanks to a partnership with the Landes Departmental Directorate of Youth and Sports (DDJS), which allocated a grant for the purchase of the latest generation of equipment for the assessment of high-level Landes athletes.
Fitness visits allow the issuance of a medical certificate granting access to certain competitions, authorizing the practice of certain disciplines, or even granting access to sports sections or Creps (Sports Resource, Expertise and Performance Centers).
But it is also a service where para-sports athletes can have their performances monitored at the highest level. Doctors Alice De Almeida and Charles Cowan are its fervent defenders, while the service is an exception in the territory: “For example, we are referenced on the French Cycling Federation, and in the field of para-sport, there are only three or four centers that are in Nouvelle-Aquitaine,” specifies Charles Cowan.
Suitable for para-sports enthusiasts
A top national athlete since 2017, in para-cycling, Olivier Lambert discovered the service a few years ago. “I came the first time for a stress test, in relation to my season. I knew there was a sports section here, it allows you to monitor your performances. In terms of rehabilitation, I had quite a few shoulder problems and I was able to get through them thanks to this service. I didn’t have any standard monitoring, but as soon as I started having problems, I came knocking on their door.”
Doing a stress test on a “winch” is the kind of specific facility that para-athletes can find at the Dax hospital.
Isabelle Louvier/SO
On a special installation, a “winch” reminiscent of those used by para-cycling athletes, propelling themselves with the strength of their arms rather than their thighs, Olivier has the electrodes fitted to analyse his performances: “This first visit will allow us to define a training protocol”, confirms the doctor. At 50, Olivier Lambert, fifth in the French championship, continues training and still has many years of high-level practice ahead of him.
Unique in the Landes
Dr Alice De Almeida details the protocol used with the para-athlete: “We adapted the seat to the level of the chair, so that it is more comfortable during exercise.” The hand bike requires ergonomic adjustments and straps on the chair, which may move during exercise. On the bike on which Olivier does his shopping, he is much more reclined, but the sensations are not disorienting. “It is a personal approach, but in the sector, to do an exercise test on a hand bike, there are not many suitable places. Neither in Bayonne, nor in Bordeaux, apart from the Creps.”
Sometimes, the department receives visits from top athletes: “We had a fencer from the French team who came to see us, while the team was training in Dax. We receive patients in the para-sport field, all sports combined. We recently had a former surfing champion who came to see us to set up a protocol,” explains Alice De Almeida.
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