Meet The Team

Sport and Exercise Physician
MBCHB, BPhed (Hons), PG Dip Sports Med, FACSEP

Jake is a specialist Sport and Exercise Physician with a passion for all forms of physical activity.  Raised in Wellington, he completed a Bachelor of Physical Education (Hons) at Otago before going on to study medicine.  He completed his specialist training through time in Wellington, Auckland and finally at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. He now enjoys supervising and teaching registrars completing their specialist training. Jake gets a lot of satisfaction in helping active motivated people recover from injury or illness and achieve their goals, and covers all areas of sport and exercise medicine.

Jake has roles providing medical support for various teams and organisations including the Wellington Phoenix Football team, Cricket Wellington, NZ School of Dance and RNZ Ballet, and is a recognised medical provider for High Performance Sport NZ.  He travelled to the Beijing Olympics in 2008 with the NZ Men’s Football team, and was the head of the medical team to the Rio Paralympics in 2016 and Tokyo Paralympics in 2021.  He is also a senior lecturer for Otago University at the Wellington Medical School.

Jake has enjoyed participating in many sports and remains very active.  His passion is ITF Taekwon-Do and has previously represented New Zealand at the World Championships.  Jake keeps active running, conditioning and in various other social sports and activities, including trying to keep up with his 3 boys.

Sports Medicine Registrar

Dr Theo Dorfling joined the Capital Sports Medicine team at the beginning of 2016. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the team after leaving his job as a GP to continue his studies in Sports Medicine.

He works closely with Dr Jake Pearson as well as running his own clinic on Wednesdays and Fridays.

Theo keeps himself extra busy outside of the office looking after sports teams including the Hurricanes.

BHSC, PGDipHSc (Musculo), MPNZ
Director Capital Sports Medicine

Peter graduated from Auckland University of Technology in 2008 completing a Bachelor in Health Science.  He completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy in 2014 enhancing his skills in the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions.  He has a particular interest in sports medicine and is always keen on extending his knowledge in the “hands on” approach to physiotherapy.

Peter and his wife Keryn (another one of our physios) moved to Wellington in 2011 from his home town Auckland, mostly for a change of scenery but also to be closer to family and friends.

While in Auckland Peter was a physio for a number of sports clubs and representative rugby teams including the North Harbour Sevens, Colts and Maori teams as well as the Northcote Premier and Senior 1st club rugby teams who he also played for a few years ago.  Since arriving in Wellington he has worked with the successful Wellington Sevens team winning the national title in 2014 and has continued work with the medical team at the Wellington International Sevens.

Peter still has a passion for rugby and is a keen runner and can often be seen running around the waterfront or up Mt Vic.  He regularly participates in the Porirua Grand Traverse and Crazyman events with the Capital Sports Medicine team and also enjoys mountain biking on some our fabulous bike tracks around Wellington.

BHSC, BPhed, BCA, COMT, MPNZ
Director Capital Sports Medicine

Keryn became part of the Capital Sports Medicine team in 2012, when she moved back to Wellington from Auckland with her husband Peter, another Capital Sports physiotherapist.

Keryn grew up on the Kapiti Coast and originally studied in Wellington. She completed two degrees – in Physical Education, majoring in Exercise Prescription and a commerce degree in Management – before moving to Auckland to continue her education in Physiotherapy. She graduated from the Physiotherapy School at AUT in 2008 and has a real passion for helping patients return to pre-injury health in a functional way.

Keryn has worked with a wide range of sports teams. Working with a number of representative and premier rugby teams. She was also part of the medical team supporting players at the busy North Shore Netball Courts.

Outside of work Keryn is kept busy running around with her two very active boys. She also loves mountain biking, running and the odd Adventure Race.

BSC (Hons), MNZSP

Chris brings more than 20 years of experience in physiotherapy working in a range of countries and environments. He has been in New Zealand and at Capital Sports Medicine for the past 10 years.

Chris is a keen mountain runner and mountain biker (sometimes he even manages to stay on his bike!). He has participated in various events in the local and wider area such as Crazyman and The Goat all with varying degrees of failure

He has a broad base of skills but given the propensity of mountain biking carnage in Wellington and crazy ultra-running guys/girls around, he is often in demand for these areas. More recently he has been progressing his knowledge in the area of modern concepts around pain management and rehabilitation.

BHSc Physiotherapy 

Nikki joined the team at Capital Sports Medicine after returning from the UK in 2015.

Nikki brings over 20 years of physiotherapy experience to the team. Graduating from AUT with a BHSC Physiotherapy , she then went on to train in pilates and acupuncture -becoming a Registered Physiotherapy Acupuncturist.

In her earlier years a physiotherapist, Nikki worked with a wide range of representative sports teams. She then went on to fill all her spare time with her own sporting endeavours including indoor, outdoor and gaelic football, indoor netball and touch rugby. On returning from the UK, Nikki dusted of her dancing shoes and immersed herself in salsa and kizomba and more recently samba.

Having done ballet into her late teens and with her love of dancing, Nikki has a keen interest in dancing injuries. However she enjoys the variety of injuries that Capital Sports brings.

Hazel joined the Capital Sports Medicine team at the beginning of 2014 after moving up the country from Christchurch where she worked for the previous 5 years at a multi-disciplinary sports medicine clinic.  She originates from England and came over to travel and work. She ended up falling in love with the Kiwi land and a Kiwi man so decided to stay.

Hazel is the current physiotherapist for the New Zealand Women’s U16 and u17’s football team. She has travelled with the team to the U16’s Oceania Championships in 2023 and 2024 and the FIFA U17s World Cup in the Dominican Republic in October 2024. In the past Hazel has also worked closely with the Capital Women’s Football team and was their team physiotherapist in 2019 and 2021 and their youth team in 2022 and 2023.

Hazel has a keen interest in running related injuries. She works for the Wellington Extra Mile Runners as a running coach and physiotherapist providing muscle balance screenings and running gait assessments.  She works with a diverse range of runners from complete beginners aiming to run 5km through to experienced runners training for half and full marathons.

Hazel completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy in 2016 and is a member of Physiotherapy/Sports Physiotherapy New Zealand.

In her spare time, Hazel has enjoyed a return to playing hockey and recently
represented Wellington in the Masters Hockey Tournament. She is also kept busy looking after her two very active young boys.

Jimmy joined Capital Sports Medicine in 2022, after spending some time away from sports physiotherapy to work with children with developmental difficulties in the education sector. He had previously worked as a musculoskeletal physiotherapist in the Wellington CBD prior to having a stint in paediatric physiotherapy and is very happy to be back in the area of physiotherapy that is his main passion.

Jimmy enjoys dealing with all aspects of injuries, from early pain management right through to end-stage return-to-sport testing. He likes to have a hands-on approach to treatment early on to reduce pain and increase function, and then progress exercises specifically to suit the patient’s needs and goals. Jimmy has been looking after the Seatoun Central League Women’s football team since 2023, as well as working with the Capital Women’s U20’s football team over the last couple of years alongside Hazel (another physio at Capital Sports Medicine). He has also completed his foundation course in Dry Needling.

Outside of physiotherapy Jimmy is passionate about many different sports, and competed in cross-country running at an international level in his younger days. These days he plays football, tennis, the odd game of social netball, and golf mainly, as well and some strength and conditioning in the gym to complement his running.

Kenzy is our newest member to the CSM physio team!  She is a New Zealand trained Physiotherapist who has recently returned from working and gaining valuable experience in London.  

Since completing her Bachelor of Health Science in Physiotherapy at Auckland University of Technology,  she has amassed extensive  experience in both private and public healthcare settings. Kenzy has managed a spectrum of injuries from acute to chronic, and pre-to post-surgical care, she is also a certified Pilates instructor and sports massage therapist.  

In Kenzy’s practice, she combines her expertise in physiotherapy with a passion for  Pilates to help individuals achieve their peak physical potential. 

In her spare time she lives a very active lifestyle which consist of running, hiking, water skiing, with a background in playing  high level football.   Outside of the clinic, Kenzy can often be found teaching reformer based classes at a local  studio in Wellington.

Kenzy is passionate about empowering individuals to achieve optimal  strength and function, ensuring they lead healthy, robust lives.

Bachelor of Health Science (Physiotherapy)
PG Diploma (Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy)

Fiona has an extensive history of working with vestibular, headache and concussion patients in various capacities, including working with the Concussion Service in the Wellington region.

Working with these patients has fueled her passion for assisting and facilitating people’s wellbeing.

Working at The Headache Clinic has enabled her to exclusively treat vestibular, headache and concussion patients and help patients get the most out of life.

Level 6 Diploma in Clinical Remedial Massage, BTEC in Therapeutic Massage and Yoga Teacher Training +200 hours. Registered with Massage NZ.

Rachel, originally from the UK, is a manual sports therapist that utilizes yoga movement & breathing practices weaving them into her treatments and prescribed homecare. She is the current Massage Therapist for The Central Pulse Netball Team 2021.

During her time as a massage therapist she has also worked with Saints Basketball Team, New Zealand College of Dance, the Sharks Rugby league, and has a particular interest in work with Runners (IronMan/Marathon & Trail) Rachel uses an individualised approach for the clients’ treatment needs, using a combination of techniques: soft tissue massage, gentle joint mobilisation, silicon cupping, dry needling, muscle energy techniques, yoga exercises and breathing techniques (to help breathing disorders/ stress / & sports performance). Helping to promote optimal functional movement for her clients to both move and breath with ease in their chosen sport and life. In her free time, Rachel likes to be out in Nature and keeping active, you can find her whizzing around the city on her bike, in the ocean Freediving, on the mat practicing yoga/meditation or hiking/trail running in the bush or up mountains.

Nadja is passionate about helping people feel free and at ease in their movements, allowing them to find joy in their sports and activities of daily living. Therapeutic massage can make all the difference in modulating pain and how you perceive your body, creating a new awareness of how the body moves.

Everybody is different and she welcomes you with a new curiosity each time to tailor the treatment to your current needs while keeping the bigger picture in mind. Treatments can include cupping, muscle energy and myofascial techniques, as well as deep tissue. And yes, you will get exercises to take away so you can move better for longer before you want to come back for your regular maintenance.

When she doesn’t massage, she likes to turn life upside down learning new circus skills and teaching pole dance.

Chika received her neuromuscular therapy training from New Zealand College of Massage. With Shiatsu massage being a part of her Japanese upbringing and her father being an acupuncturist, she developed an interest in anatomy from an early age, aided by a life-size replica skeleton in her lounge.

Upon relocating to Wellington for her massage therapy studies, Chika was taken aback by how active the locals were but was also dismayed to discover that many believed massages had to hurt to be effective, subscribing to a “no pain, no gain” mentality. In contrast, Chika’s approach is that massages should never be painful. Any discomfort experienced by the client during treatment should have a clear reason, such as breaking up scar tissue as an example. To tailor her massage techniques to each client’s needs, Chika uses trigger points, acupressure points, myofascial release, deep tissue, and joint mobilisation techniques. She believes that effective communication is crucial in achieving the best results for her clients and creates a conducive environment for them to provide feedback on their experiences.

Personal Growth Coach

Orthopaedic Surgeon

Rob Rowan is an Orthopaedic Surgeon with subspecialty training in upper limb surgery and paediatric orthopaedics.

When Rob is at Capital Sports Medicine, he tends to patients with hand, elbow, shoulder and knee conditions. Of particular interest to Rob are sports related injuries and arthroscopic (keyhole) surgery.

Professor Andrew Harrison is a Wellington rheumatologist with three decades of experience in his field.

His main interest is the treatment of inflammatory conditions, especially arthritis. An important part of his work is the assessment of patients who present with musculoskeletal pain and other symptoms in order to determine the diagnosis and the appropriate management.

His main clinical role is the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, lupus (SLE), scleroderma, polymyalgia rheumatica, giant cell (temporal) arteritis, osteoarthritis, gout and many other inflammatory conditions.

Outside of work he enjoys boating and fishing, fine wine and good food. He is a reluctant gardener.