Alain Aguilar featured on the “Meet A Tarheel Section” on the UNC Website. To access the full article by go to: http://www.unc.edu/meet-a-tar-heel/aguilar
Alain Aguilar
This past December, Tar Heels everywhere turned their eyes to the UNC men’s soccer team as it closed in on what would be its first NCAA College Cup championship in ten years.
But Alain Aguilar – lecturer in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science and athletic trainer for the team – was focused on the details. While others followed the ball up and down the field, he followed the ankles, hips and knees chasing it.
Aguilar and his athletic training staff spent the year with the players, combating strength imbalances and healing hamstrings. As the sole trainer traveling with the team in the post season, he stayed ready to assist with any injuries, soreness or muscle weakness that might get in the way of the Cup.
He also serves as director of the Fitness Professional Concentration for his department. Aguilar, who moved to North Carolina from Ohio and earned his master’s degree from the department in 2006, guides students in the Exercise and Sport Science track who plan to specialize in careers that focus on health, fitness and wellness. The program focuses on strength and conditioning, performance enhancement, hands-on training and practical classes where students apply the science they’ve learned.
“It can be a little like having two full-time jobs,” he says. “But I like sports, science, medicine and helping people. It works.