Sports Medicine Australia
Australia's national umbrella organisation for sports medicine, sports science, safety education and athlete health.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
Sports Medicine Australia (SMA) is Australia's national umbrella organisation for sports medicine and sports science. Established in 1963 as the Australian Sports Medicine Federation, it developed from professional and medical networks associated with the provision of medical services during the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. The organisation brings together a broad community involved in sport and physical activity, including sports physicians, orthopaedic surgeons, general practitioners, physiotherapists, optometrists, dentists, podiatrists, dietitians, psychologists, sports scientists, nurses, teachers, academics, soft-tissue therapists, chiropractors, sports trainers, sporting clubs and community participants. SMA operates across the boundary between elite sport and grassroots participation. Its work includes professional education, conferences, research communication, practical safety guidance, first-aid education, sports-trainer development and public policy commentary. The organisation has branches in each Australian state and territory, enabling it to support local sporting communities while maintaining a national role. Its activities address both the prevention of injury and illness and the management of problems that arise during training, competition and recreational activity. A central part of SMA's public-facing work is the production and dissemination of evidence-informed resources. These include guidelines, fact sheets and educational materials covering subjects such as heat and cold exposure, concussion and head injury, illness, mouthguards, children in sport, women in sport and other participation risks. SMA also provides advice to governments, sporting organisations, schools, clubs and the media. Its commentary has addressed questions including safe exercise in extreme temperatures, skiing injuries, childhood obesity and the interpretation of sports-health policies. The organisation has maintained an important publishing and knowledge-sharing role. Its first journal, the Australian Journal of Sports Medicine, began publication in 1964 and was later renamed the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. The journal became a multidisciplinary outlet for sports medicine and sports science research. SMA has also published Sport Health, a magazine and information resource aimed at practitioners and the wider sporting community. SMA's education and safety programs are particularly associated with the Australian Sports Trainers Scheme, launched in 1982. That initiative evolved into the Safer Sport Program, which supports safer participation by developing the skills of sports trainers and providing coverage or education for sporting, school and community events. The program reflects SMA's broader objective of maximising participation in physical activity while reducing preventable harm. The organisation has convened major professional gatherings since its first conference in Adelaide in 1965. Its annual national conference is described as Australia's largest and most significant sports medicine and sports science conference, while state branches conduct additional events. SMA has also hosted major international meetings, including FIMS congresses and an Olympic Congress on sports sciences. Although specialist professional bodies now represent some of the disciplines within its membership, SMA continues to collaborate with those organisations, including through joint conferences and shared initiatives. Its national office became a virtual office in 2010, with staff located in state offices, reflecting a distributed operating model.
History
Sports Medicine Australia traces its institutional origins to the expansion of organised sports medicine around the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. Medical services associated with those Games helped create the conditions for a durable national sports-health body. In 1963, earlier Australian sports medicine organisations were brought together to establish the Australian Sports Medicine Federation. The federation initially reflected the medical orientation of the field, but its membership and remit expanded over time as sports health became increasingly multidisciplinary. The federation's first major publishing milestone came in 1964 with the Australian Journal of Sports Medicine. This publication provided a vehicle for communicating clinical and scientific knowledge and later developed into the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport. The organisation held its inaugural national conference in Adelaide in 1965. Conferences became a continuing part of its role, bringing together practitioners, researchers, educators and sporting organisations. SMA's international profile grew through its involvement in major sports-medicine gatherings. It hosted a FIMS conference in Melbourne in 1974 and the XXIII FIMS World Congress in Sports Medicine in Melbourne in 1986. In 1999, Sydney hosted the fifth International Olympic Committee World Congress on Sports Sciences, another event connected with Australia's sports-science community. These meetings reinforced the organisation's function as a forum for exchanging research and professional practice. During the 1980s, SMA broadened its practical contribution to community sport. It launched the Australian Sports Trainers Scheme in 1982 and published a survey of drug use in Australian sport in the same year. In 1983 it began publishing Sport Health, extending its communication beyond specialist research audiences. The organisation established a national office in Canberra in 1984 and published Guidelines for Safety in Sport in 1989. Together, these developments reflected a shift from a primarily professional association toward a national safety and education organisation serving sporting clubs, schools and community participants. The membership base continued to widen beyond doctors. It came to include orthopaedic surgeons, sports physicians, physiotherapists, optometrists, dentists, podiatrists, dietitians, psychologists, sports scientists, nurses, teachers, academics, soft-tissue therapists and chiropractors, alongside sports trainers, clubs and community members. Some specialist groups later established independent organisations, such as the Australasian College of Sport and Exercise Physicians, Sports Dietitians Australia and Exercise and Sports Science Australia. SMA nevertheless continued to work with these bodies, particularly through collaborative education and joint conferences. In its contemporary form, SMA combines professional development, public information, policy advice and event support. Its Safer Sport Program incorporates the earlier sports-trainer initiative and aims to make participation safer across elite, school, club and grassroots settings. The organisation produces guidance on concussion and head injury, heat and cold exposure, illness, mouthguards, children and women in sport, and other sports-health issues. It also comments to governments, organisations and media on matters such as environmental risk, skiing injuries and childhood obesity. In 2010, SMA changed its administrative structure so that the national office operated virtually, with staff located in state offices. This distributed model complemented its branch network and enabled the organisation to retain national coordination while maintaining state-level engagement. SMA remains an active Australian sports-health organisation linking research, clinical practice, education and community sport.
- 2010
National office becomes virtual
[1]National staff were located in state offices as SMA moved to a virtual national-office structure.
- 1999
IOC World Congress on Sports Sciences held in Sydney
[1]Sydney hosted the fifth International Olympic Committee World Congress on Sports Sciences.
- 1989
Guidelines for Safety in Sport published
[1]The organisation published a national safety guidance document for sporting participation.
- 1986
FIMS World Congress hosted in Melbourne
[1]SMA hosted the XXIII FIMS World Congress in Sports Medicine.
- 1984
National office established in Canberra
[1]The organisation established a national office in Australia's capital.
- 1983
Sport Health magazine launched
[1]SMA began publishing Sport Health as an additional channel for sports-health information.
- 1982
Australian Sports Trainers Scheme launched
[1]SMA introduced a national sports-trainer scheme and published a survey concerning drug use in Australian sport.
- 1974
FIMS conference hosted in Melbourne
[1]The organisation hosted an international Federation Internationale de Medecine du Sport conference in Melbourne.
- 1965
First national conference held in Adelaide
[1]SMA's predecessor held its inaugural Australian Sports Medicine Federation conference in Adelaide, South Australia.
- 1964
Australian Journal of Sports Medicine begins publication
[1]The federation launched its first journal, later renamed the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
Products and positioning
A national, multidisciplinary sports-health authority connecting clinical professionals, researchers, sports trainers, clubs, schools, governments and community participants. SMA positions its work around evidence-informed education, injury and illness prevention, safe participation and knowledge exchange across elite and grassroots sport.
Academic journal · 1964
Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport
SMA's principal academic journal evolved from the Australian Journal of Sports Medicine, first published in 1964. It serves as a multidisciplinary publication for research and scholarship in sports medicine, exercise science and related sports-health fields.
Professional and public information magazine · 1983
Sport Health
Sport Health is SMA's magazine and information channel for communicating practical sports-health knowledge to professionals, trainers, clubs and the broader sporting community. It was first published in 1983.
Safety and education program
Safer Sport Program
The Safer Sport Program incorporates the organisation's sports-trainer activities and supports safer participation in sport and physical activity. It provides education and practical support for sporting, school and community settings, with an emphasis on prevention and appropriate response to injury and illness.
Evidence-informed guidance
Sports medicine guidelines and fact sheets
SMA publishes practical resources addressing sports-health risks and participation issues, including heat, cold, concussion and head injury, illness, mouthguards, children in sport and women in sport. These materials support practitioners, sporting bodies, trainers and community participants.
Professional conference · 1965
National Sports Medicine Australia Conference
SMA's annual national conference is a major Australian meeting for sports medicine and sports science. It provides a forum for professional education, research exchange and collaboration among clinical, scientific, educational and sporting communities.
Brand decisions
2010
Transition to a virtual national officeStrategyBackground
SMA maintained a national role through a network of state branches and offices.
Action taken
The national office became virtual, with staff members located in state offices.
Aftermath
The change supported a distributed administrative model while preserving national coordination across the organisation's Australian branches.
1982
Launch of the Australian Sports Trainers SchemeProduct launchBackground
SMA identified a need to improve the practical sports-health capability available at sporting events and in community settings.
Action taken
It established a sports-trainer scheme that provided structured training and developed into the Safer Sport Program.
Aftermath
The initiative became a long-running component of SMA's safety and participation work, supporting sporting, school and community activities.
Recent events
- 2010
National office adopts a virtual operating model[1]
Other
The organisation's national office became virtual, with staff distributed among state offices.
- 1982
Australian Sports Trainers Scheme launches[1]
Product launch
SMA established a sports-trainer scheme that subsequently became part of its Safer Sport Program.
- 1964
First Australian sports medicine journal begins publication[1]
Product launch
The Australian Journal of Sports Medicine was launched. It later became the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
- 1963
Australian Sports Medicine Federation is established[1]
Other
The organisation was formed as the Australian Sports Medicine Federation through the amalgamation of earlier Australian sports medicine associations.
Sources2 sources
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