History of SMA

Sports Medicine Australia (SMA) was formed in 1963 following the amalgamation of the Australian Sports Medicine Association and the Australian Federation of Sports Medicine. Membership was originally restricted to medical doctors but was widened to include a range of health care professionals such as orthopaedic surgeons, sports physicians, sports doctors, physiotherapists, optometrists, dentists, podiatrists, dietitians, psychologists, accredited exercise physiologists, sports scientists, exercise scientists, nurses, teachers, academics and chiropractors.

Major Historical Milestones

1963 – Australian Sports Medicine Federation established.

1964 – Australian Journal of Sports Medicine first published. Now called the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.

1965 – Inaugural Australian Sports Medicine Federation Conference, Adelaide, South Australia.

1974 – Hosted FIMS Conference, Melbourne, Victoria.

1982 – Launched the Australian Sports Trainers Scheme and published the Survey of Drug Use in Australian Sport.

1983 – Sport Health magazine first published.

1984 – Established National Office in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.

1986 – Hosted XXIII FIMS World Congress in Sports Medicine, Melbourne, Victoria.

1989 – Published Guidelines for Safety in Sport.

1999 – 5th International Olympic Committee World Congress on Sports Sciences, Sydney, New South Wales.

2010 – National Office became a virtual office with staff members located in state offices.

2016 – One SMA formed.