Qualifications

• • Bachelor of Physiotherapy

• • APMA Pilates Instructor

Special Interests

• • Acute sports injury rehabilitation,

• • Pelvis, Hip, Knee, Shoulder and Spinal manual and stability Physiotherapy,

• • Real-Time Ultrasound assessment and use in muscle retraining

• • Core stability programs incorporating Real-Time Ultrasound and Pilates

• • Acrobatic Specific Pilates

• • Injury Prevention

Affiliations

• • Australian Physiotherapy Association

Background

Emma Joukadjian-Lawler is a Senior Physiotherapist with extensive international experience across Australia, Asia, Europe and South America. She specialises in orthopaedic physiotherapy, athlete performance, and injury management, with a particular focus on gymnastics, circus arts, dance, acrobatic and elite athletic populations.

Emma has worked across a wide range of high-performance environments, including International and National competitions, training camps, with many professional sporting organisations. She has provided physiotherapy support at major events such as World Gymnastics Trampoline World Championships, World Cup Competitions in MAG, Acrobatic Gymnastics and Trampoline and Rthymic Gymnastics at Pacific Rim international competition for Gymnastics Australia.

Her career includes significant involvement with elite and professional organisations, including Cirque du Soleil, where she has worked since 2010 across multiple international productions including Corteo, Quidam, Saltimbanco, Ovo, and Totem and many more. She has also worked with international circus companies and theatre companies such as Disney’s The Lion King, the Victorian Men’s Artistic Gymnastics High Performance Centre, and as a Victorian team physiotherapist at the Australian Gymnastics Championships.

Emma is a provider Physiotherapist for the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia (Including Aerial Skiing Summer Series World Cup competition and training camps for Australian and Swiss teams), Australian Sailing, Rowing Australia, and previously the Melbourne Football Club (AFL), Melbourne Tigers (NBL) and Commonwealth Games 2006.

In addition to her performance work, Emma has extensive clinical experience in private practice, delivering evidence-based care to a diverse patient population. She combines hands-on manual therapy with Clinical Pilates and strength-based rehabilitation, with a strong emphasis on stability, movement quality, and long-term injury prevention. She is also experienced in real-time ultrasound for muscle retraining and integrates this into her rehabilitation programs where appropriate. Emma’s background across acrobatic and high-performance sports gives her a unique and in-depth understanding of movement, injury mechanisms, on-field management, and return-to-play planning. Her areas of special interest include acute sports injury rehabilitation, spinal and peripheral joint stability, core strengthening, and acrobatic-specific conditioning. She holds a Bachelor of Physiotherapy, is an APMA Pilates Instructor, and is a member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association. Emma is known for her holistic, athlete- and patient-centred approach, combining global experience with practical expertise to optimise performance and support long-term health outcomes.