PHOTO: ODT FILES The need for New Zealand to look after the health and wellbeing of its past Olympians is set to be underlined by a University of Otago study involving former elite athletes. ‘‘These high performance athletes, we need to look after them,’’ Dr Walker said. Athletes would also be asked about their nutrition and exercise during the year they last competed in the Olympics, Paralympics, or Commonwealth Games. Athletes were finely tuned human beings, but at times they pushed themselves right to their physical limits, Mr Dixon said. Many of the health issues athletes faced were faced by the general population as well, but athletes had the benefit of a good diet and lifelong exercise habitats that bolstered their chances against illness, he said.

Source: Otago Daily Times August 11, 2021 16:30 UTC