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26 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · SATURDAY, AUGUST 16, 2008 CONTRAST OF EMOTIONS: American players celebrate as their Canadian counterparts, including Oakville's Kara Lang (second from left), ponder how close they came to upsetting the top-ranked U.S. in Olympic women's soccer quarterfinal action yesterday (Friday) in Shanghai. Canada extended the U.S. to extra time before falling 2-1, ending the Canadians' medal hope in the program's first-ever Olympic appearance. PHOTOGAMMA / GETTY IMAGES Canadians eliminated with OT loss to U.S. The Olympic medals hopes are over for Kara Lang, Diana Matheson and the Canadian women's soccer team. Canada managed to extend the topranked United States into extra time in yesterday's quarter-final contest at the Olympic Summer Games in China, but Natasha Kai's header in the 101st minute sent Canada to a 2-1 defeat and elimination from medal contention. Canada, ranked ninth in the world going into the Games, trailed early but tied the game on a strike from Christine Sinclair in the 30th minute. The U.S. controlled almost every facet of the game, firing 34 shots towards the Canadian goal, with 17 right on the mark, while the Canadians could only muster eight kicks towards the net and seven on. Local chiropractor aids Nigerian runner in medal quest Sandy Sajko specializes in treatment of elite athletes By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR T welve years after Donovan Bailey's memorable victory in Atlanta, another Oakville resident might have a say in who wins the men's 100-metre dash Olympic title. Sandy Sajko won't be lining up in the starting blocks next week in Bejing, however. His work is already done. Sajko's potential influence lies with Nigerian sprinter Francis Obikwelu, the 100m silver medalist at the 2004 Games in Athens and considered a darkhorse pick to win gold in Beijing. Obikwelu, who will represent Portugal after defecting there as a teen, enlisted the help of Sajko's sports chiropractic services in preparation for the Olympics. Sajko recently flew to Spain to treat Obikwelu and tune up the sprinter's mechanics, and was pleased with the improvement Obikwelu immediately showed in training. "His right knee is not able to fully extend -- he had surgery when he was younger -- and he has a lot of repetitive strain injuries," Sajko said this week, seated in one of his offices at Maple Grove Chiropractic Clinic. "We dealt with that and then with getting his mechanics as efficient as possible. It's one thing to run pain-free, it's another to run more mechanically sound and efficient." Before Sajko arrived, Obikwelu was completing 120m sprints in nearly 11 seconds. When Sajko left, the runner had knocked half a second off that time. "He was able to extend his leg further and increase his stride length," said Sajko. "There's no way I could confirm I made an athlete quicker, but after this experience it's pretty encouraging." The 29-year-old Obikwelu usually receives treatment from Orillia-based chiropractor Larry Bell, who Sajko worked with during his sports residency program at Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC). Bell is currently in Beijing for the Olympics, so Sajko got the call. "He has a masseuse and a physical therapist (where he trains), but nobody that does the stuff we do with him," Sajko said of Obikwelu, who worked in construction at the age of 16 and wasn't discovered as a runner until scouts noticed him at the world junior soccer championships. "It's worked in the past for him, so he keeps doing it." This is hardly the first time Sajko has worked closely with an elite athlete. The St. Ignatius of Loyola grad has done extensive work with NFL, CFL, NHL and NBA athletes in the past, and also enjoys treating local amateur athletes. Sajko's interest in sports-specific chiropractic work stems from his own athletic abilities. The 35-year-old played rep soccer and hockey as a child, captained the Oakville Blades in his final year of junior hockey, scored against now-NHL superstar goalie Roberto Luongo in an exhibition game between the Ontario University All-Stars and the Canadian junior team, and played for Croatia at the world hockey championships. He finds his own experiences as an athlete help him relate to others, particularly the psychological aspects of injuries. "Any time you're an athlete, you can definitely relate physically, mentally and emotionally," Sajko said. "The big thing I deal with is athletes are really uptight or nervous about their injuries. I reassure them we'll get them better and that CHRIS KORNACKI / OAKVILLE BEAVER THE DOC: Oakville chiropractor Sandy Sajko, pictured in one of the offices at Maple Grove Chiropractic Clinic, recently worked with Olympic medal-hopeful sprinter Francis Obikwelu. See Injury page 28