Erwina Kwan started playing basketball in 1st grade. Now 35, she just finished playing in a tournament this past weekend.
She grew up to be a sports physical therapist and says she wants to make sure the next generation of athletes can enjoy the sport into their adult years, too.
“Basketball has taught me so much, on and off the court,” she said, but adds. “A lot of my friends that I’m playing with are getting injured.”
This weekend, she’s offering a one-day clinic for female high school athletes, called “Elite Hoops,” at her workplace, Los Gatos Orthopedic Sports Therapy, at Suite 101, 16615 Lark Ave., from 8am-2pm.
And, it’s totally free to attend.
“It’s basically for me to give back to the community that has meant so much to me,” she said. “Hopefully it’s a start to something bigger.”
Kwan recalls all the days spent making baskets in high school competitions, and in college intramurals. Now she plays in an LGS Recreation league.
The plan this weekend will be to run students through a series of stations to test range of motion, strength, jumping and agility.
The physical therapists that will be on site all have doctorates.
Kwan says the idea is to set participants on a journey of learning how to be more resilient and think more holistically about their approach to sports.
Imran Qureshi, the Los Gatos Orthopedic Sports Therapy CEO, says she hopes the clinic will help foster stronger ties with local teams.
“We see it as a way to engage and support youth athletes by helping them optimize their physical abilities in a safe, encouraging environment,” Qureshi said. “We see this as an investment in the community, and we want to spotlight the importance of early athletic care.”
In fact, Kwan has been dreaming of holding such an evaluation session for a couple years now.
She says it’s important to her to be able to reduce instances of meniscus tears, achilles ruptures and cruciate ligament problems.
Essentially, coaches will have to spend less time responding to crises, if the importance of strength training and other protocols are built in earlier on.
“If they have limited ability or range of motion that’s something we can target,” she said. “If there’s any weaknesses we can help address that.”
One thing that the specialists will be looking for this weekend is any issues with what’s known as “landing mechanics”—basically, how you land from a jumping move, such as a layup.
“People don’t necessarily know how to land,” Kwan said. “A lot of them don’t necessarily know how to absorb force…You want to prevent knee valgus.”
Kwan’s particularly fascinated by the science of slowing down.
“An alarming percentage of injuries happen from deceleration,” she said. “My big thing right now is really the deceleration, change of direction and landing.”
It’s almost like teaching a whole new way of life, she ventures.
“We know that injuries are going to happen regardless,” she said. “If we can do everything we can to help prevent that, and mitigate that, we’re heading in the right direction.”
“Elite Hoops” will take place at Los Gatos Orthopedic Sports Therapy, at Suite 101, 16615 Lark Ave., Los Gatos, from 8am-2pm, Saturday, Nov. 9.
