Dr. Bahar Hassanmirzaei is a globally recognized sports and exercise medicine specialist with over a decade of experience in professional football, athlete care, injury and illness prevention, clinical leadership, and research. She has dedicated her career to advancing athlete health, sports medicine practice, and injury prevention strategies nationally and internationally.
Since 2014, Dr. Bahar has served as the team physician for the Iranian women’s football and futsal national teams, providing medical oversight across youth and senior categories. She has held prominent roles, including Head of the Medical Department at the Iran Football Federation, Head of Research & Development at the Iran FIFA Medical Center of Excellence, Head of the Education Committee at the Iranian Association of Sports and Exercise Medicine, and Head of the Medical Committee at the Iran Sport for All Federation. As an AFC Medical and Doping Control Officer since 2017 and a member of the AFC Medical Committee (2022–2023), she has been pivotal in advancing football medicine and serving as a medical, doping, and injury officer at national and international tournaments.
Having football as her main focus of sports, she joined the Aspetar Sports Injury and Illness Prevention Program (ASPREV) as a researcher, focusing on developing and implementing injury and illness prevention strategies in professional football, with applications that extend to other sports, as part of her PhD project. Currently, as a sports medicine physician, she also provides comprehensive medical care to professional and amateur athletes across multiple sports and the general population with sports-related concerns.
Dr. Hassanmirzaei has played a key role in major international tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup 2022, AFC Champions League, AFC Asian Cups, AFC youth competitions, and the Badminton World Championships, coordinating medical teams and implementing evidence-based athlete health management strategies. She has contributed to international scientific conferences, with over 40 peer-reviewed publications AND +600 citations, 35 conference presentations, and ongoing research collaborations with leading institutions.
Qualifications:
- PhD, Sports Medicine, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Norway (2023-)
- Healthcare MBA, Shahid Beheshti University, Iran (2022-)
- Sports Medicine Specialist, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Iran (2018)
- Medical Doctor (MD), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran (2014)
- Licensed Sports Medicine Physician – Qatar & Iran
Career Achievements and Leadership Roles:
- Recipient of AFC Young Medical Officer Award (2023)
- Head of Medical Department – Iran Football Federation (2021–2022)
- Head of Research & Development – FIFA & AFC Medical Center of Excellence (2015–2022)
- AFC Medical Committee member, Asian Football Confederation (2022-2023)
- Senior Advisor – Sports Medicine Committees, Iran Football Federation (2010–2021)
- FIFA World Cup 2022 & AFC Injury and Illness Surveillance Officer
- Medical oversight at national and international professional football tournaments
- Badminton World Federation Tournament Doctor (2022–2023)
- AFC President’s Travelling Fellowship in Football Medicine
- First woman Medical Officer appointed in AFC Men’s Club Competition (ACL)
- Scientific advisor on multiple national and international football medicine research projects
- Member and committee contributor to international football medicine congresses
- Lead and contributor to education and research initiatives, including national sports medicine conferences and injury prevention seminars