This year medical support will be provided by the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre (NCCTRC) who will provide a full response team, as well as some other local and international medical and allied health volunteers. Riders and support staff will be cared for by a large team of over 5 doctors, 10 nurses, physiotherapists (Charles Sturt University), paramedics, exercise physiologists and fire and rescue support crew. The NCCTRC team are all from the Northern Territory, and part of a disaster response team stationed in Darwin for activation across Northern Australia and our near neighbours in SE Asia.

Riders will find on course support in the form of roving medical crews, ambulances at strategic locations, and at the end of the peloton. They will also have access to a purpose built field medical facility at the end of each stage. This will include a triage area, for initial assessment, and two large treatment sections for those in urgent need, and those with minor complaints and injuries. Evacuation by helicopter will be available on a priority basis, but riders are reminded that if you are injured or become ill, all costs of care once in Dili, and/or repatriation home, will be bourne by you or your insurance company. All participants in the Tour de Timor, including riders, supporters, volunteers and race crew are encouraged to take out appropriate Travel Insurance. For riders, you are encouraged to discuss medical insurance support from your national cycling federation.

While every effort will be made to make sure you have access to immediate care out on the course, you may come across fellow riders in difficulty well before a medical team or ambulance arrive. Please stop and render first aid to your fellow riders if required. Time spent supporting other riders will be reaccredited at the discretion of the Commissaires and Race Director. Be aware that it’s also valuable to tell those at aid stations, if you have recently passed someone in difficulty.

This year, you will be given a pre-race brief , outlining some ways to maximize your performance in the heat, and avoid visiting the medical tents. We will also talk to you about the basics of avoiding illness during the race. Please remember basic traveling common sense before you arrive at the start line, including care in using trustworthy sources of food and drink to avoid gastroenteritis, and avoiding all mosquitoe bites. Please visit your GP or travel doctor prior to your arrival in Timor Leste for advice about vaccinations and malarial prevention. We would recommend you consider prophylaxis for malaria and are fully covered for vaccine preventable diseases encountered in SE Asia.

Finally, don’t forget to pack some basic first aid items, to carry on the course, and make sure you don’t forget any medications you normally take; these may not be easily available in Dili, and certainly not in remote areas. The medical team will have medications to treat serious illness and common medical complaints, but we will not be a source of your regular medications (e.g. blood pressure tablets etc).

Please feel free to come and visit us before the race with any concerns, and during the race with any medical problems at all.