SHRS alumna Ashley Koto in Paris ready for the Olympics!
With the 2024 Paris Olympics (July 26 - Aug. 11) and Paralympics (Aug. 28 - Sept. 8) taking place this summer, SHRS is showcasing some of its faculty and alumni who are supporting the athletes and programs!
Ashley Koto, who earned a bachelor’s degree in athletic training from Pitt in 2006, is a physical therapist and athletic trainer with USA Gymnastics who will spend about two weeks in Paris with the team.
Growing up in Williamsport, Pa., Koto says, “I was a gymnast myself and went in and out of physical therapy a lot. I kind of knew that's where I wanted to go. And I liked the sport side of things. And so somebody had advised me to do the athletic training route, which was the smartest thing I could have ever done because now I get to do the best of both worlds.”
After getting her doctorate in physical therapy at Old Dominion University, she became a sports medicine physical therapist at Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters in Chesapeake, Va.
How did you get involved with Team USA?
“My old director at the hospital system I work for accepted a position with USA Gymnastics as their chief of athlete health and wellness. And when they were looking to add somebody to the women's team to help support their physical therapist and athletic trainer, she put my name in the hat. I went out and did some events with them and they liked me. So here I am.”
What will you do at the Olympics?
“Hopefully we're not treating any serious injuries. You know, these high-level athletes always have some sort of ache and pain going on that we help them work through so that it doesn't become something more serious, and then we do a lot of recovery treatment. So just kind of helping their bodies shut down, calm down and prepare for the next practice or competition.”
SHRS alumna Ashley Koto (right)
How did your experience at Pitt prepare you for your career?
“The whole program at Pitt set me up really well as an athletic trainer. We were lucky to have a lot of amazing professors and leaders but also the athletic trainers that we worked under to get the on-the-field experience. My first rotation was in-season football, and you get thrown right into having to do everything. So, I think that just gave me a lot of comfort and experience working with things like on-field management.
“Kevin Conley, chair of the Department of Sports Medicine and Nutrition, was such a huge mentor and just a wonderful human. We're still in contact, and I actually met up with him last year. One of my old classmates from Pitt and I went to one of the football games and got to see him again and catch up on all the things, so he's always been a huge inspiration.”
What are you most looking forward to at the Olympics?
“Seeing the looks on the faces of these athletes and seeing what it's like for them. It truly is amazing, all the work that they put in and finally getting to this stage in their career, and it's fun to watch.”
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Continue reading:
SHRS' Team Behind Team USA: Ed Strapp
SHRS' Team Behind Team USA: Christie-Lee Coad
SHRS' Team Behind Team USA: Rory Cooper
This article was originally published in Pitt Health Sciences News.