Our experts

Charlotte graduated in 1989 from Guy's Hospital Medical School, trained in Sport and Exercise Medicine at the Royal London Hospital in 1993 and qualified as a registered osteopath in 1999. Since then she has worked mostly full-time in sports and musculoskeletal medicine.

She has a special interest in football and has looked after the England Women's football squad for five years and various professional football teams, most recently as Head of Medical Services for Tottenham Hotspur FC. She has worked as a Medical Officer in Team England HQ for the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games, was Chief Medical Officer to the Team GB Holding Camp for the 2000 Sydney Olympics and most recently as Medical Officer in Team GB HQ for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Tom started out in General Practice in 1980 and opened a sports clinic in 1982. He gained a diploma (with Merit) in Sports Medicine in 1986 and in 1990 left to concentrate on sports and orthopaedic medicine. He has cared for many representative and national teams including England hockey, Essex cricket and London division rugby, and was the Chief Medical Officer to the British team at three World University Games from 1993-1997.

Tom is now a member of the Medical Commission of the International University Sports Federation. He provided medical care to the Olympic Training camp in USA in 1994, and was a Headquarters Medical Officer to the British team for the 1996 Olympic Games and in 2000 was Chief Medical officer to GB team at Sydney Paralympics. He was a member of the organising committee for the Commonwealth Games Manchester 2002.

John trained as a GP before specialising in orthopaedic and sports medicine. He ran a sports injury clinic in Milton Keynes for seven years, a medical osteopathic practice in Bermuda for four years and on return to the UK developed the Oving Clinic as a multidisciplinary practice in West Sussex. He has also worked as an Associate Specialist at Odstock Rehabilitation in the Pain Management team for 10 years and in orthopaedics at Worthing.

He has authored two books ‘Better Back’ and ‘Your Guide to Back Pain’. He pioneered the use of extracorporeal shockwave therapy in tendinopathy in the UK, and has a special interest in chronic musculoskeletal and spinal pain, interventional pain relief techniques and psychological management. He is an instructor for the International Spinal Intervention Society and sits on the European Faculty; and set up a new course for postgraduate training for doctors in musculoskeletal medicine, teaching regularly throughout the UK.

Mukul qualified in medicine from the Royal London Hospital in 1994 and has been a sports and musculoskeletal doctor for the past five years. He has worked at numerous international games including the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Athens and the 2002 Commonwealth Games, and was formerly the Head of Medical Services at Leicester Tigers Rugby Club.

Before Bupa he worked at the Olympic Medical Institute, the English Institute of Sport and as the Chief Medical Officer for Great Britain Powerlifting. As a side line to sports medicine he also provides medical support to various expeditions in places such as Madagascar, Nicaragua and the Himalayas.

With a background in competitive figure skating, it seemed a natural progression for Eleanor to specialise in sports and exercise medicine. In 2003 she completed a MSc in Sports and Exercise Medicine at London and worked there as a clinical research fellow. During this time she was closely involved with both the undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and research programmes, with a particular focus on the use of peripheral joint, soft tissue and spinal injections.

Since 2007 she has been on the specialist registrar training scheme in London with placements in Public Health, General Practice, Orthopaedics, Rehabilitation Medicine and Sports & Exercise Medicine. As well as working for Bupa Sports Medicine, she is also based at the Olympic Medical Institute. She has worked with several sports teams, including England Women’s football, GB Women’s Basketball and has been the National Governing Body Doctor for Figure Skating since 2003. In addition, she has worked at various sporting events including European Youth Olympics, Youth Commonwealth Games, British University Championships and London Triathlon.

Dr Speight is a musculoskeletal and sports/exercise doctor working exclusively in the private sector. He has worked in all areas of medicine dealing with musculoskeletal problems in the NHS, but moved into the private sector five years ago. He is also a registered osteopath.

Martyn has a particular clinical interest in difficult lumbar-pelvic pain syndromes involving the sacro-iliac joint, sciatica and lower limb problems, particularly tendinopathies in endurance athletes, and ultrasound guided interventions. He has experience with elite athletes in tennis, running and rugby, and regularly contributes to the management of injured rugby league players.

Martyn is a competitive fell runner and is also course organiser and tutor for the British Institute of Musculoskeletal Medicine and sits on their education sub-committee.

Peter is a Fellow of the Faculty of Sports and Exercise Medicine. He has been running the Reading Sports Injury Clinic at Bupa Wellness in Reading for over 20 years. He was previously a General Practitioner.

Peter was an Olympic rower and is a Medical Officer to the Olympic Medical Institute at Northwick Park Hospital and a member of the World Rowing Medical Commission. He examines in sports and exercise medicine for the University of Bath and the Intercollegiate Academic Board of Sport and Exercise Medicine. His special interests are adolescent sport injuries and stress fractures.

David initially trained as a secondary school teacher and taught physical education for two years. He qualified as a physiotherapist in 1992 and completed a postgraduate manipulative musculoskeletal therapy programme in 1997. David’s years of experience in orthopaedic and musculoskeletal physiotherapy is mostly in private practice. He has directed a physiotherapy department in a large teaching hospital, has taught undergraduate courses and has worked as physiotherapist and fitness coach for a number of sporting teams in Perth, Australia.

David has worked for Bupa Sports Medicine for 11 years and has a special interest in sports medicine and manual/manipulative physiotherapy. He practices acupuncture and applies a pragmatic rehabilitative approach to problem solving.

Catherine qualified in 1990 from the Queen Elizabeth School of Physiotherapy, Birmingham and has continued her learning ever since, gaining a Postgraduate Diploma in Practical and Academic Sports Physiotherapy and recently completing her Masters in Neuromusculoskeletal Physiotherapy. She also practices acupuncture and is a qualified Body Control Instructor in Pilates.

Before working for Bupa Sports Medicine, she led a team of physiotherapists at the Royal National Orthopedic Hospital, Stanmore and was team physiotherapist to the Saracens R.F.C for four years.

Catherine believes that successful outcomes are the result of forming an accurate diagnosis and applying early intervention of customised treatment that includes an understanding of patients’ work and exercise needs.

Peter has a Masters degree in Manipulative Physiotherapy (University of Brighton 2002) and is a member of the Manipulative Association of Chartered Physiotherapists. He has studied acupuncture to a postgraduate diploma level and is a member of the Acupuncture Association of Chartered Physiotherapists.

He is an experienced private practitioner and adopts an integrated approach to treatment using evidence-based treatments, including manipulation, joint and nerve mobilisation, soft tissue release and trigger point massage, acupuncture, core stability and sports specific rehabilitation. He specialises in treating and rehabilitating sports injuries and complex spinal complaints, pelvis dysfunction and neural pain.

Previous experience includes treating patients from the West End shows and the National Theatre, working at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre treating national and international athletes as well as working within team squads such as Tottenham Hotspur FC.

Alex qualified in physiotherapy at Curtin University in Australia in 1993, during which time he was playing competitive tennis to a national level in Australia as well as tennis coaching both juniors and adults. He then worked for several years doing a variety of in-patient and out-patient general physiotherapist roles both in Australia and in the USA.

In 1997 he began to specialise in the out-patient musculoskeletal area and also gained experience working with state level tennis players and elite rugby players in team competition. Alex completed his Master of Manipulative Therapy degree in Perth in 2001.

Alex has worked in both private practice and public out-patient settings over the past seven years as well as being involved with undergraduate and postgraduate clinical physiotherapy teaching associated with Curtin University for several years. He has a special interest in treating lower back injuries and sports injuries, particularly in racquet sports.

Kate qualified from Guy’s Hospital School of Physiotherapy in 1991 and has since gained extensive experience in spinal and sport related injuries. She holds a Diploma in Injection Therapy and has also had specialist training in shoulder rehabilitations and now advises and lectures in this area. Through her work with integrated multi-disciplinary team at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Kate has a good working knowledge of chronic pain management and uses acupuncture for pain relief as an effective adjunct to some of her treatments.

For the past five years Kate has held full certifications as a Registered Clinical Pilates Instructor with the Australian Physiotherapy and Pilates Institute. She runs both small groups and one-to-one remedial Pilates sessions for the clinical population.

She is also a competitive road cyclist with a special interest in rehabilitation of cycling injuries and biomechanical considerations relating to this sport.

Simon graduated with a Bachelor of Physiotherapy in 1993 and commenced work in orthopaedics. In 1996 he completed a postgraduate Diploma in Manipulative Physiotherapy and is a member of the Manipulative Association of Chartered Physiotherapists. He has trained as an Extended Scope Practitioner at St Mary’s Hospital, London and is currently studying towards a Masters in Physiotherapy at the University of Bath.

With over 15 years’ clinical experience and 10 years in private practice, he has a special interest in manual therapy, sports and spinal injuries. He has worked with elite athletes in sports ranging from tennis and ballet through to veterans track and field.

Since graduating from Brunel University in 1997, Russell has worked at some of the foremost physiotherapy departments in the UK and continues to do so with Bupa Sports Medicine. Through postgraduate study and working with leading orthopaedic physicians, surgeons and physiotherapists, Russell has gained valuable experience and developed excellent skills in the assessment and treatment of the musculoskeletal system.

Russell’s interest in sporting injuries has continued to develop. He has treated and rehabilitated injuries from a variety of sports such as marathon running, triathlon, skiing, football, rugby and tennis.

Through working in the corporate sector for over four years Russell is experienced in the treatment of common conditions experienced by those working in office environments and has a special interest in problems such as trapped nerves, arm, back and neck pain. As well as physical treatment he is able to assess and advise on optimal workstation set-up, and believes in identifying a client’s needs to direct appropriate treatment.

Tim graduated from the Otago School of Physiotherapy with Credit in New Zealand in 1998. He went on to complete a Master of Sports Physiotherapy with Distinction at the Curtin School of Physiotherapy in Western Australia in 2002. He has lectured at an undergraduate level and supervised students at a postgraduate level in sports physiotherapy.

Tim is a member of the Acupuncture Association of Chartered Physiotherapists and is a British Triathlon Federation Qualified Coach. Although he is a sports physiotherapist he is able to help manage both sports and non-sports related injuries.

Kelly graduated in Physiotherapy from Otago University (New Zealand) in 1996. Following this, she completed a Masters in Health Science at AUT (New Zealand), in 2003, specialising in Western Acupuncture and Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy (combined Sports and Manipulative Physiotherapy).

She is an advanced member of the Acupuncture Association of Chartered Physiotherapists (AACP) and in 2007 progressed her acupuncture training further to include treatment during pregnancy.

Kelly has worked with regionally and internationally ranked athletes across various sports such as netball, volleyball, tennis, athletics, and gymnastics.

Natasha graduated with a BSc (Hons) degree in Physiotherapy in 1994 and went on to obtain a Postgraduate Diploma in Sports Physiotherapy (1996) and a Master of Science Degree in 1998.

She has worked extensively in the fields of sports and musculoskeletal physiotherapy, which has included elite sport at international level, namely the Olympics in Sydney, 2000. She has attained postgraduate certification in clinical acupuncture and clinical pilates and has mentored postgraduate students. Natasha has a keen interest in running injuries.

Bupa Sports Medicine clinical team leader and senior physiotherapist – Reading

Nikki qualified with BSc (Hons) Physiotherapy in 1995 from Brunel University and obtained an MSc Sports Medicine from Trinity College Dublin in 2004. Nikki has gained extensive experience of sports injuries and has worked in Rugby Union for 16 years and continues to work with Sutton and Epsom RFC and Radley College, Oxford.

She has worked and toured with professional dancers, tennis players and golfers and most recently worked with the military at Headley Court treating elite athletes and injured soldiers returning them back to active service. She is dedicated to achieving the maximum potential from any client and is an advocate of preventative rehabilitation.

She draws on her experience and knowledge using a wide range of techniques involving manual therapy, soft tissue release techniques, current research, exercise and Pilates rehabilitation, as well as a multi-disciplinary team approach to rehabilitation. She loves a challenge both inside and outside work. She seeks adventurous travel and is a keen sailor and skier.

Tanya completed a four year B.Sc. Honours Degree in Physiotherapy in 2000 at the University of the Free State in South Africa. Shortly after qualifying she moved to England and worked as a locum physiotherapist for two years. Following this, she returned to South Africa and spent 18 months working in private practice within out-patients, closely alongside a neurologist.

Tanya returned to England in 2004 and worked for Berkshire East PCT in physiotherapy out-patients for six months. Following this, she started work with Bupa Sports Medicine. She now specialises in Pilates and Core stability retraining. Her hobbies include horse riding, fencing and squash.

Lesley graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University in1998 and spent the next five years working in public and private hospitals in areas including orthopaedic trauma, medical chests, musculoskeletal out-patients, elderly care, neurology, general surgery, hydrotherapy, elective orthopaedics and intensive care. She has trained with the Football Association at the Lilleshall National Sports Centre and holds the FA Diploma in the Management of Sports Injuries. Lesley has also worked in professional cricket and rugby.

Lesley joined Bupa Sports Medicine in 2004 and is an experienced practitioner dealing with a wide variety of musculoskeletal disorders. She works very closely with occupational health nurses, a team of GPs and a musculoskeletal and sports medicine doctors to provide a seamless service to her patients. Lesley also provides post-operative physiotherapy and rehabilitation after neck, back, shoulder, hip, knee and foot surgery. She has a particular interest in treating complex and chronic pain and believes a multi-disciplinary approach is essential in this area. Lesley is a member of the Acupuncture Association of Chartered Physiotherapists.

David is a graduate of the British School of Osteopathy having previously completed a degree in Physical Education and played professional rugby union at international level. He specialises in the treatment of sports and dance injuries, with over 10 years’ experience treating elite sportsmen and women, including Olympic athletes, and both Premiership football and rugby players.

As well as working at Bupa Sports Medicine, he is osteopath to Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, consultant osteopath to the England Cricket team and the All England Championships, Wimbledon. He lectures widely on all aspects of osteopathic sports medicine and has an MSc in Sports Injuries.

Jamie qualified as an osteopath in 1994 from the British school of osteopathy after four years of study. After an initial spell working in Europe and around the

UK he settled in London working at private osteopathic clinics and sports clubs. For the last 6 years Jamie has worked exclusively for Bupa, based in clinics around the city and onsite with various corporate customers.

Jamie practices structural based osteopathy with a special interest in work related back pain. He has lectured widely and works closely with other practitioners at Bupa in their multidisciplinary approach to healthcare.

Claire graduated from the British School of Osteopathy in 1992. She lectures to graduate and post graduate osteopaths and is a founder member of the Osteopathic Sports Care Association. She was part of the polyclinic medical team at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester in 2002, and has worked with both the Scottish Exiles Rugby Union Squad and London Scottish Rugby Club during their time in the Premiership. She has a special interest in treating headaches of spinal origin as well as recurrent and chronic injuries.