Venue:    Inspace, 1 Crichton Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9AB

Date:        Thursday 13th January 2011

Time:        5.30 pm - 7pm

Admission:    Free. Pre-booked places only

Human Race: inside the science of sports medicine is hosting a film and discussion evening in partnership with Scottish Ballet to explore current thinking in the care and treatment of elite performers from football and ballet. Both disciplines demand extraordinary levels of strength and fitness, as well as a near-fanatical commitment to a career that is relatively short-lived and could end in injury at any moment.

Human Race: inside the science of sports medicine is a Scotland & Medicine initative. It is funded by Legacy Trust UK, an independent charity set up to create a cultural and sporting legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games across the UK, and Creative Scotland. It has also been granted the London 2012 Inspire mark which recognises outstanding projects and events helping to deliver the Games’ lasting legacy.

A screening of Daniel Warren's Mercury will be followed by a panel lead discussion exploring the parallels that are developing between the care and treatment of dancers and footballers. Scottish Ballet and the Scottish Football Association have been working together to learn from each other’s practices and develop new ways to treat injuries. In doing so, they are continuing the long tradition of innovation and development in Sport and Exercise Medicine in Scotland.

Scotland has played a dominant role in the transformation of Sport and Exercise Medicine from a ‘hobby’ interest to a recognised discipline. Sport and Exercise Medicine is concerned with the physical body of the athlete: how to treat it, how to prevent injury, how to enhance its performance and how it works. The standard and type of treatment received by athletes has changed dramatically over time; today elite athletes have access to specialist medical care before, during and after competition. The care of athletes has come a long way since the ‘magic sponge’ and Scotland’s sports teams now enjoy specialist medical care.

Mercury is a 35 minute film that explores dancers' movements: how they are developed and the impact they have on the dancers’ body. The movements are filmed at high speeds, up to 2000 frames per second, a technique normally used in ballistics and engineering. As a result, the images are analytical rather than observational. We see in minute detail the refined adjustment and subtle shifts that a dancer makes in order to shape a movement.

The film also gives the viewer an insight into the complex relationship between the dancer and choreographer and allows us to focus on the intellectual and physical labour of the ballet dancer.

After the film the audience will be given the opportunity to join Daniel Warren, Paul Tyers, Scottish Ballet’s Deputy Artistic Director and Dr John MacLean, Scotland football team doctor to consider and debate the importance of understanding the needs of the elite performer and the parallels between the two disciplines. For more information or to book a ticket visit the Human Race website at www.scotlandandmedicinehumanrace.com, Inspace at http://inspace.mediascot.org or Scottish Ballet website at www.scottishballet.co.uk