N.S. duo supports Olympic gymnasts

Lori Dithurbide, a certified mental performance consultant, attended the Paris Olympics as a member of the support staff for Canada’s gymnastics team. (Contributed) 

As Canadian gymnasts competed while the world watched during the recent Summer Olympic Games, two Nova Scotians played key roles behind the scenes.

Martha Purdy, a Truro native who owns Synergy Physiotheraphy + Pilates in Halifax, and Lori Dithurbide, a Grand Etang native who serves as associate professor at the School of Health and Human Performance at Dalhousie University, were part of the support staff in Paris for the Canadian team, which included Fall River native David Kikuchi and gymnast Ellie Black of Halifax.

It was Purdy’s second Olympics, having attended the Tokyo Games in 2021 with the Canadian gymnasts.

“Most sports have a four-year plan for each Olympic cycle in order to get ready,” said Purdy. “The intense part starts about two years out, and the year before is definitely intense. There’s lots of development camps and that’s when support staff gets most of that preparation in place for the actual event.”

Dithurbide, a certified mental performance consultant, also does contract work for the Canadian Sport Institute Atlantic in Halifax and went to the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro to work with Canadian gymnasts as well as some kayak and sailing athletes. 

Physiotherapist Martha Purdy attended the Paris Olympics as a member of the support staff for Canada’s gymnastics team. (Contributed) 

“Events like the world and Pan-American championships are usually held the year before, so that’s when we start mimicking the Olympic experience as closely as we can,” said Dithurbide. “Gymnastics is unique in that it’s usually an individual sport and you have a few competitions that are team focused, but the Olympics are very much team focused. Our athletes are mostly training on their own then come together as a team, so we try to do team simulating all the time but really ramp up about a year or so from the event.”

Purdy’s daily role in Paris began with exercise sessions, followed by training then treatment. The same routine applied on competition days, but with more stress and intensity.

“What was really important was maintaining that routine,” said Purdy. “Just getting them comfortable with things like when they eat, when they work out, when they sleep. When they’re home, that routine is so structured, and when you get to the Olympics there are so many external factors, so having that daily routine is key so everyone knows what to expect.”

Having development camps and competitions in the host city in the years leading to an Olympics is key to getting used to such external factors as travel, accommodations and handling down time, which goes a long way in helping athletes stay mentally focused.

“In an ideal world, you do enough preparation so that once competition begins, I’m just there as a support system if anything should go outside of what we had planned,” said Dithurbide. “I’m also there to support the coaches and staff, and to help lower any distractions and serve as a sounding board. I use the analogy of me being a garbage can, so everyone can dump their garbage on me, and I can help manage that.”

Purdy and Dithurbide have been involved in discussions for the next Summer Games in Los Angeles in 2028. Purdy says she’s on board for the next four-year cycle while Dithurbide has committed to being involved for at least one more year.

“I love it,” said Purdy. “I come from a gymnastics background. It’s a sport that I love and I’m happy to give back.”

“Right now, it’s more about rest and recovery and planning,” said Dithurbide. “I’m really enjoying the ability to take what we’ve learned and start moving forward and formulating a plan for the next little bit, and we’ll see what happens after that.”  

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