Sports Medicine

Sporting achievements take centre stage: titles, victories and personal best performances are celebrated. What happens in the background often remains unseen. However, this is exactly where a significant part of sustainable performance development lies.

Our quality in sports medicine is reflected not in the headlines, but in day-to-day clinical practice: in precise diagnostics, nuanced assessment of physical capacity, judicious treatment planning. We prioritize long-term health over short-term results, even when the pressure is high. We see this approach as practised excellence.

The Sports Medicine department at Schulthess Clinic supports not only professional athletes, but people of all ages following injuries or overload symptoms. Whether ambitious up-and-coming talent, top athletes, recreational athletes or people returning to sporting activities, the questions in focus are always the same: which level of load is appropriate? Which therapy is effective? And how can a safe, sustainable return to physical activity be achieved?

Young talent and athletes in later career stages

We are seeing increasing intensity of training with a corresponding increase in the risk of injury among youth. Close interdisciplinary cooperation is crucial here: the Sports Medicine, Orthopaedics and Physiotherapy departments plus the athlete's personal support network work together closely. The aim is not only to return to sport as quickly as possible, but also to develop in a healthy way over the years.

Supporting experienced athletes in later career stages is just as challenging. This is where high performance targets meet individual physical requirements. What is needed is a nuanced risk assessment, realistic goal-setting and support that honours experience and provides an honest assessment of physical capacity.

For us, excellence in sports medicine therefore means more than top-class care in professional sports. It includes prevention, structured rehabilitation and the promotion of healthy movement at all performance levels. We continued to implement these principles consistently in 2025, with clear return-to-play concepts, individual advice and close coordination within an interdisciplinary team.

After all, returning to sport pain-free and with confidence in one's own body after an injury is an achievement that often means more than any medal.