Romanian Team turns to Alternative Medicine

Members of the national gymnastics team at Deva head to acupuncture treatments twice a day, at 9 in the morning and 8 in the evening, after the last training session. The treatments started last Friday, when Mircea Zamfirescu, a general practitioner, came to the training center, carrying [acupuncture] needles, [herbal] tinctures and teas.

”I will try to solve the major problems during the next 12 days, but this is just a quick surface fix. The girls should receive more attention from the sports officials. If they want a competitive team, they should invest [money] in it accordingly,” said Zamfirescu, a former national champion in hammer throw. The medical practitioner will send his bill to the RGF after his stay at Deva. “I have my own practice in Bucharest. I charge 100,000 lei ($3) for every acupuncture session for retired people. Everyone else pays 150,00 lei ($5). I will have a different fee for the gymnasts, though,” he explained.

Andreea Răducan is the only team member who refused Zamfirescu’s treatment. “I asked her to come a couple of times, but she’s afraid of needles,” he explained. Only 2-3 girls showed up at the first session. “Just seeing those needles scared me to death,” recalls Sabina Cojocar. "I’m still scared. Sometimes, when he sticks the needle in, it hurts a lot, but there’s nothing I can do about it…” None of the two [head] coaches at Deva used the doctor’s services. “I have my own self-control that no doctor can influence,” proclaimed Octavian Belu. The team’s head coach believes the gymnasts are already doing better after going to Mr. Zamfirescu’s sessions. "Many of them are now pain-free. For example, Andreea Ulmeanu, told me her legs aren’t giving her anymore trouble.” Mircea Zamfirescu, who confessed his treatment is meant to “push the Deva cart [i.e., help move things along]“ hopes to aid in the recovery of the 5 gymnasts needed for the upcoming European Championships.

“None of the girls is completely ready so far. Actually, we don’t know really know what we’re doing. Are we getting ready for a competition, or are we on a crash diet with Carmen Ionescu who gained 10kg [22 lbs] after her 2 months vacation, and complains of elbow discomfort, or heel problems, or are we doing rehab with Sabina Cojocar following her shoulder surgery?” wondered Belu. “This time around, we will not panic. It’s all in God’s hands.”

Andreea Răducan has a different training schedule than the rest of the team. “I only work with her, at least in the afternoon,” said Belu. “We’re trying to get her out of this ‘poor kids’ who have health problems medium, and expose her to a more optimistic atmosphere,” he explained. “We haven’t even weighed her lately, to make sure we don’t create a new stress factor for her. Whether or not she’ll compete at Europeans is entirely up to her,” added Mariana Bitang.

National Sports Problems Research Center director, Pierre de Hilerin, was the one who recommended Zamfirescu to the RGF. “He is a close friend, but that doesn’t matter. I trust him as a doctor, because he helped me and my family,” said Hilerin. "I know he worked in Germany before and now he has his own practice, called Acumed in Bucharest. Maybe he can solve the crisis at Deva.”

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