Photo Credit: Professional Cricketers’ Association
Wellness International provide health checks for former cricketers.
The PCA held its first Past Player Wellness Day at Edgbaston, partnering with Wellness International who administered the health screening initiative.
Former cricketers from across the country gathered to have their cardiovascular health analysed by a Wellness International expert.
From recently retired Paul Horton at 41-years-old, to PCA founder Fred Rumsey, aged 87, the day proved popular among former players with every appointment on offer being taken.
Wellness International administered checks on blood pressure, cholesterol and body composition along with a lifestyle questionnaire which enabled them to evaluate each individual’s cardiovascular health and the probability of a cardiovascular episode within the next 10 years, which the players received as a percentage.
The participants then received a specific health plan regarding their cardiovascular health aimed at improving their diet, exercise and overall lifestyle.
The day was possible thanks to the Professional Cricketers’ Trust. The players’ charity funded the initiative, driven by a desire to instil a proactive approach to the health of PCA members.
PCA Director of Member Services, Ian Thomas, said: “This is the first time we’ve run a health screening initiative for our past players and it has proved extremely popular.
“Once you’re a member of the PCA, you’re a member for life and we take our duty of care to our past players very seriously.
“This initiative provides past players an opportunity to get themselves checked to see if their cardiovascular health is good and ultimately if there are any issues then hopefully they will be detected early enough.
“Credit to Edgbaston, they’ve been a great support to us and when we explained what we wanted to do they were very accommodating and gave us a space for the van and I’m sure if the demand is there we’ll be able to get other counties involved too.”
Former England international, Mike Watkinson, said: “I got given the opportunity to have a health check by the PCA and when you get the other side of 60, medical ailments can creep up on you, so having the tests done has been very useful.
“I feel part of the PCA with regular communication and to be told about this initiative I think it’s a credit to the PCA for looking after the former players because there’s lots of us.”
Find out more about the help and advice offered by the PCA’s Member Services.
The Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA), founded in 1967 by former England fast bowler Fred Rumsey as the Cricketers’ Association, represents past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales. In the 1970s, the PCA established a standard employment contract and minimum wage for professional cricketers. It also helped create a pension scheme in 1995 and launched the magazine All Out Cricket and the ACE UK Educational Programme in 2002.
