How do you treat the world’s best athletes? A Broward doctor is off to Paris Olympics

Jeremy Frank began wrestling in the fourth grade and continued into college, but never thought he’d be going to the Olympics. But that’s where the 46-year-old Parkland man will be for the next two weeks with the U.S. Olympic wrestling team.

Frank, an orthopedic surgeon at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, was appointed as head physician for the men’s and women’s wrestling teams at the summer Olympics.

As the wrestling team’s only doctor, he’ll be on the front lines to treat injuries, illnesses or other medical issues the country’s wrestlers might experience during the games.

Team USA walked away from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 with nine wrestling medals, the most of any country. According to NBC Olympics, the U.S. team won the most medals since the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles that were boycotted by the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries.

This year, Team USA is bringing 16 wrestlers to the Paris games, more than any other nation. Some of the wrestlers to watch are four-time world champion Kyle Dake, and 20-year-olds Kennedy Blades and Amit Elor, who are all favored to medal.

“This is their ultimate athletic goal: to win the Olympic gold, and whatever it takes, I have to keep them healthy and keep them participating so long as it’s safe for them,” Frank said. “Whatever support I could provide them to help them achieve that goal of winning the Olympic gold, I do it.”

What’s it like to care for Olympic athletes? Here’s what to know:

2024 Summer Olympics: Athletes to have mini-hospital in Paris

Medical professionals are flying into Paris to help support top athletes in the 2024 summer Olympics, including doctors, nurses, chiropractors, nutritionists, massage therapists and athletic trainers.

And just like at hospitals, the medical staff caring for Olympic athletes will have a variety of medical equipment available to use, if needed, including X-rays, MRI’s, IV fluids, and automated external defibrillators, Frank said.

This will be Frank’s first Olympics, though the Broward surgeon has worked with USA Wrestling for more than a decade and has provided medical care to athletes during the World Championships. He even stitched up Jordan Burroughs, an Olympic gold medalist and six-time world champion who is considered to be one of the greatest freestyle wrestlers of all time, during the 2021 World Championships in Oslo, Norway. The laceration was over his eyebrow.

“Anything the athletes need ... our whole medical staff is there instantaneously to help these athletes recover from or prepare for the next moment of competition,” Frank said.

Monitoring for injuries

While Olympic athletes might seem superhuman, they do get hurt. Wresting is brutal, after all.

Concussions and cuts on the head. Dislocated fingers. Injured elbows, knees and eyes. Skin infections from dirty mats.

These are just some of the common injuries athletes can get from wrestling and that medical staff will be on the lookout for, Frank said.

Frank said to “just think about” the Ultimate Fighting Championship. “Anything that happens in the UFC happens in wrestling,” said the surgeon, who has been involved in the sport of wrestling for more than 30 years, including as an athlete, an assistant coach, and a doctor caring for athletes.

Frank believes his wrestling background — though not at the same competitive level of the Olympics — helps him connect with the athletes more and makes him a better doctor.

“I have a firm understanding of the different positions of wrestling, what injuries can hamper different techniques in wrestling,” said Frank. He hurt his shoulder while wrestling.

‘Achieved my lifelong goal’

The surgeon’s wrestling journey began in Chicago when he was in the fourth grade, a sport he continued into college. He then volunteered as an assistant coach for the Northwestern University wrestling team during his first two years of medical school there.

“I knew from the beginning I was never going to be an NCAA champion and Olympic champion wrestler,” Frank said. But he wanted to find a way to continue being active in the sport.

It wasn’t until he moved to Miami in 2004 that Frank combined his passion for wrestling with his orthopedic training. In 2007, he began working with USA Wrestling as a medical volunteer.

The doctor, while talking inside his Coral Springs office filled with wrestling memorabilia, can’t help but think about his mom. Whenever he lost a wrestling match growing up, his mom would say: “You’re going to take your brain farther in life.”

She was right.

“I have achieved my lifelong goal of making it to the Olympics,” Frank said, “not as an athlete, but as someone who can support these amazing athletes.”

How to watch the 2024 Summer Olympics

What: Paris 2024 Summer Olympics

When: The summer Olympics take place Friday, July 26, through Sunday, Aug. 11, with the first wrestling matches set for Aug. 5.

How to watch: There are several different ways to watch the 2024 summer games, including NBC, Telemundo and streaming services such as Peacock and Fubo. To learn more, visit nbcolympics.com/faq.

Miami Herald staff writer David J. Neal contributed to this report.