CHICAGO – UIC's Dr. Mark Hutchinson is no stranger to wearing red, white and blue as the Flames' long-time head team physician. Hutchinson, for the next few weeks, will instead be wearing the familiar colors as part of Team USA.
 
Hutchinson was selected to serve as one of two lead physicians for Team USA at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games taking place in Beijing, China. The winter games feature three different villages, covering various categories of sports taking place. For Dr. Hutchinson, he'll be running the main Beijing village, which covers figure skating, speed skating, curling and big air/snowboard.


 
As part of his duties, Dr. Hutchinson oversees and staffs the medial clinic in the village, providing coverage to Team USA's athletes. As needed, Dr. Hutchinson will also be on site at events providing direct coverage in the event of an injury. Dr. Hutchinson's role requires him to adapt at a moments notice, especially during the current COVID-19 pandemic, to pivot and provide support as needed.
 
No stranger to the Olympics, Dr. Hutchinson served Team USA at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio and the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. In addition to having served Team USA at two World University Games, Dr. Hutchinson also assisted in coverage of two PanAm Games and the 2006 Winter Paralympic Games in Torino, Italy.


 
"In all honesty, the goal is the same here as it is at UIC, to help optimize athlete performance and then do nothing," said Hutchinson. "If I have little extra to do, it means everyone is staying healthy."
 
The Beijing Olympics began on Feb. 4 and will conclude on Sunday, Feb. 20.