• sports & exercise medicine
• sports medicine
• sports rehabilitation programs

In the past year, with lockdowns lifted, we again learnt the value of scientific conferences. Hence, it is with great pleasure and pride that we can announce that the #Sportskongress will again take place in Copenhagen from 2 February 2023 to 4 February 2023. Due to COVID-19, the conference scheduled to take place the year before was cancelled, even though a great deal of patience and high hopes had been invested in its success. As a result, the chance for clinicians and researchers to interact face to face was lost. It was without a doubt a huge disappointment for all the speakers and participants, not to mention the organisers, as it was the first likely opportunity after 2 years of COVID-19 lockdown to replace the online conferences with a ‘normal’ conference, one in which people would meet in person and interact both professionally and socially with one another.

Most of the outstanding programme already announced for the previous year has been kept, with only a few minor adjustments made to the speakers and the discussion topics for the sessions. The conference that will be held this year will, just like the conference that was held last year and the conferences that will be held in the future, have a strong collaboration with BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine (BOSEM). This collaboration raises #Sportskongres’s profile in the industry, which benefits the conference. However, it also allows researchers and clinicians who cannot attend the conference in person to gain insight into some of the most important points discussed during the many sessions by reading BOSEM’s extensive coverage of the conference. The most important parts of the conference will be broadcast live on BOSEM channels and the website, blogs, and other social media channels. In addition, BOSEM will publish more than 120 abstracts accepted for presentation at the #Sportskongres.

Working with a reputable, peer-reviewed scientific journal such as BOSEM is advantageous when organising a conference such as #Sportskongres. Because both parties operate from the same starting point, it is easy to see how they can benefit one another. The #Sportskongres and BOSEM aim to make it easier for scientists and practitioners, researchers and clinicians, and trainers working with patients or athletes to share their knowledge. More than 600 people have already registered for the conference, and they participate as researchers, doctors, physios or other healthcare professionals. By far, the largest portion of the participants is comprised of clinicians. Regardless of occupation or field of interest, all attend the conference to learn the most recent findings in their respective fields of interest, which will be presented in either one of the conference’s 34 symposia or 16 workshops, and to engage in discussions or informal talks with colleagues from Scandinavia, Europe and overseas. The wide range of professional areas of interest is also reflected in the conference, which features medical topics that cover diagnostics, the development of surgical techniques, and the surgical outcomes of specific procedures, as well as rehabilitation topics that cover new approaches to training for the prevention and rehabilitation of sports-related injuries. The conference specifically aims to combine the medical and rehabilitation aspects of the healthcare treatment of the athlete. However, both BOSEM and #Sportskongres also emphasised other aspects of an athlete’s health and the conditions under which they participate in sports, a topic becoming more contentious in contemporary society. This is reflected in the fact that several symposia and workshops focus on how healthcare professionals play an important role in the preservation of health throughout life, from the development of the youth athlete to the ageing athletes, and including mental issues of sport, as well as aspects of specific importance for female athletes, such as exercising while pregnant.

The dedicated poster session and oral competition of the best-reviewed abstracts are other typical highlights of the conference. The winners of the poster or oral competitions are announced during the always popular social event on the last evening. The person who submits the abstract that ends up winning the oral competition will be awarded the prize of an opportunity to have their winning project published as a full paper for free in BOSEM.

The objectives and expectations are that each attendee will have the opportunity to take part in a number of workshops and lectures that are thought-provoking and interesting, and even more importantly, that the conference will maintain the same welcoming and socially open atmosphere as in previous years, and that it will make it easier to have engaging conversations with both new and old colleagues through either personal participation or the channels that BOSEM will provide.