OKLAHOMA CITY - Officials with St. Anthony Hospital will announce today a partnership with Oklahoma City University and the Oklahoma City Boathouse Foundation’s OKC National High Performance Center to provide support for the Devon Boathouse and professional hospital services and physician care for elite athletes. An announcement ceremony will take place at 11 a.m. at the construction site of the Devon Boathouse, located in the Boathouse District on the Oklahoma River downtown.

As the official medical provider for the OKC National High Performance Center, St. Anthony will provide three physicians and services of the hospital to help athletes stay healthy and maximize their performance while training to compete at the highest levels. The physician team will consist of two family medicine doctors and a sports medicine specialist.

St. Anthony has also committed to a donation to the Devon Boathouse over the next five years.

Officials from St. Anthony Hospital, the Oklahoma City Boathouse Foundation and Oklahoma City University will provide details about the partnership at today’s ceremony. OKC National High Performance Center athletes will also discuss the importance of having services available while undergoing intense training.

“St. Anthony is pleased to partner and support the OKC National High Performance Center at the Devon Boathouse.  We are excited to be a part of the sport bringing Olympic athletes to our thriving city. The growth and development of sports on the river also serve to emphasize the number of positive, healthy activities available in our community,” said Joe Hodges, president.

Mike Knopp, head coach of the OCU rowing team and executive director of the Oklahoma City Boathouse Foundation,  stressed the importance of having physicians and medical professionals available during rigorous training regiments.

“These athletes, many of them potential Olympians, require more attention to their health than most people,” Knopp said. “Proper care can make the difference between winning a world championship and ending a career due to injury.”

Orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist Jason Emerson, D.O., along with family medicine doctors Jeffrey Hirsch, M.D., and TiTi Nguyen, M.D., all members of Saints Medical Group, will be the medical staff members at Devon Boathouse when it opens in October. The $10 million boathouse will feature state-of-the-art training equipment including an indoor propulsion rowing tank and hyperbaric chamber.