Nashville orthopedic surgeon heads to Olympics as U.S. women’s soccer team physician

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - This summer, Elite Sports Medicine orthopedic surgeon Dr. Amanda Martin will trade in her scrubs for U.S. soccer gear.

Dr. Martin will serve as the team physician for the U.S. Olympic women’s soccer team. She previously worked with the team in 2019, when the United States won the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

“What an honor,” Dr. Martin said. “Even on a microscopic level, it’s a chance to represent your country. I think most of the athletes will tell you there are so many people you never see on camera who are there to support them and their dream, and it’s just an honor to be part of it.”

The United States is the winningest country in Olympic women’s soccer with four gold medals. Dr. Martin will be tasked with making sure the players are in position to continue that streak of success in Paris this summer.

“Disease prevention, illness prevention, injury prevention is my number one goal,” Dr. Martin explained. “I will be traveling with the delegation. I will be at every practice, every team meeting, available at all hours of the day should anyone have any medical need that arises, so it’s not just on the field.”

That game plan is especially important for women’s soccer, where knee and ACL injuries routinely ravage some of the sport’s top athletes.

“The ACL injury is still eight times as likely to happen to a female athlete, and so we have instituted at U.S. Soccer, something called the Santa Monica PEP (Prevent Injury and Enhance Performance) program,” Dr. Martin shared. “This is strengthening, focusing on the hamstring, the glutes, neuromuscular balancing and control.”

With all of that in mind, Dr. Martin is working to set a gold standard for studying and supporting female athletes through her work with the U.S. women’s national team.

“We’ve intuitively known that ACL injuries are more common in female athletes, non-contact, but we haven’t always known why,” Dr. Martin said. “We’re really starting to see interest in researching the female athlete, which is something that’s never happened before. It’s an exciting time.”

There’s plenty of excitement for Dr. Martin and her family as she embarks on her Olympic medical journey. She said her husband and two daughters will be flying to France for the games, so her daughters can see all the ways you can represent your country and fulfill your dreams.

“Representing your country is everything, even on my level,” Dr. Martin said. “As a child, you watch this on television, you see people, and you realize that those letters are on your body: U-S-A. Even as just the little bitty part as the team physician, it’s an honor. It’s an overwhelming honor.”

The United States women’s soccer team will begin group play in the Paris Olympics starting Thursday, July 25.

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