In the National Football League, winning the Super Bowl is the biggest prize. In competitive figure skating, that equal is an Olympic Gold Medal.

And in 2006, the road to Torino, Italy and the 2004 Winter Olympics runs through St. Louis.

The 2006 State Farm U.S. Figure Skating Championships will be January 7-15 at the Savvis Center and St. Charles Family Arena. For a local skater like 15-year old Debbie Knubley, competing in St. Louis is hard to top. Knubley will be at the Family Arena competing at the amateur level.

"I''m so excited since it''s my hometown and my family and friends will be there to support me," she says.

However, like many skaters who have risen to this level, Knubley''s path has been riddled with injury.

"The sport carries lots of injuries and I''ve had them," she says. "Torn hamstrings, bruised labrums, knee problems, but I''ve been able to recover quickly."

Those injuries are very common according to Matt Matava, MD, orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine. He says the most common problem is simple overuse.

"When you''re figure skating competitively, you tend to put a lot of hours into your sport, so some sort of injury is almost inevitable," says Dr. Matava.

To keep these athletes on the ice during the championships, Barnes-Jewish Hospital and the physicians of Washington University School of Medicine are the official health-care provider of the event. As official health-care providers, Barnes-Jewish Hospital nurses, physicians and physical therapists will be on-site to care for the skaters and officials. The job goes around the clock, even at the athletes'' hotel, for urgent care 24 hours a day.

The medical staff is also the official health-care provider for the St. Louis Rams and Blues. While one would think the types of injuries hockey players suffer would be different than a competitive figure skater, the injuries are actually very similar according to Dr. Matava.

"These athletes frequently do too much activity with too little rest and the injuries tend to involve the lower extremities because of the stress the skate and foot interface undergoes," says Dr. Matava. "We see a lot of bursitis a lot of calluses and a lot of tendonitis because of the way the skates are configured on the foot.

"The fortunate thing is most of those injuries tend to result in a relatively easy cure without operative means," says Dr. Matava. "That means a skater should get rest, physical therapy, anti inflammatory medications or perhaps have a coach or a skate expert reconfigure their skate."

More seriously, labral tears and bursitis are very common as well.

Joyce Brown, RN, clinical coordinator of community events at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, says the hospital and staff are proud to be able to help these skating athletes stay healthy. "We were chosen because we have all the resources the event needs. The selection was also based on our experience working with the Rams and Blues, as well as our hospital''s Top 10 ranking in the United States."