All-Star Injuries In Gymnastics And Their Industry's Take On It...

[Mclovin]

This article popped up on my Facebook thread and I just love it!! Two olympic gold medalists that got injured DUMBING DOWN their routines. I think this article is great and needs to be read by the USASF committee members who keep trying to eliminate tumbling skills. Thoughts??

Get Well Soon! Comes WIth the Territory | News | Inside Gymnastics Magazine

 

[chyeeaaa69]

Just would like to point out, I read another article on it (didn't see the details in the link you posted) and Aly's injury wasn't because of the fact that she fell, it sounded like it was the fact that there wasn't enough mat so a large part of her body landed on concrete, so McKayla may be the better example to take from this.
I do think it is interesting to look at from a cheer perspective though. Many people who can throw the most elite skills in cheerleading will say that many of their injuries were lower level skills (of course not ALL)

 

[yojaehs]

Maroney and Raisman reportedly injured on Kellogg's Tour | Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions | Gymnastike
Here is the video. Looks like McKayla landed locked, which regardless of skill shouldn't have been done. Aly missed her grip, plenty of mat there she just cleared it. Mclovin my main issue with the rules placed on the cheer world are based on what someone "thinks" will help and not looking into statistics and facts. I 100% agree, this is a great article!

 

[Mclovin]

Maroney and Raisman reportedly injured on Kellogg's Tour | Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions | Gymnastike
Here is the video. Looks like McKayla landed locked, which regardless of skill shouldn't have been done. Aly missed her grip, plenty of mat there she just cleared it. Mclovin my main issue with the rules placed on the cheer world are based on what someone "thinks" will help and not looking into statistics and facts. I 100% agree, this is a great article!

Agreed. If I had some specific statistics and facts, I might be able to understand. But just someone ASSUMING harder skills are more dangerous just really bothers me. This article just made my day.

 

[ryann3794]

I posted a thread the other day looking for articles because Im writing a paper for one of my classes and this is going to help sooo much!

 

[f5forever]

I wish I could shimmy that article! Every sport has the chance for injury. I wish those in charge would concentrate on the actual problem: it's not the skills that are thrown, it's the expertise of the coaching. And sometimes an injury is an accident, they happen.

 

[kyyyyyyxo]

I love this.

I am part of the "statistics" that USASF has been trying to fight by limiting skills.

I first tore my acl doing a skill that I did several times in an earlier practice, warmed up again that practice starting with handsprings and working my way up, threw once - good, threw again - POP!

Come back from that - POP!

Those first 2 - They were freak accidents!!! The first one just happened. The second one, I PTed my butt off!!! It still happened doing NOTHING.

Now my last one was preventable but had nothing to do with skills.
I was conditioning. The athletic training doctor told me my knee felt a little loose and I needed to be careful, I told the coach that this particular conditioning wasnt something I should be doing. I could tell he thought I was just trying to get out of it as he told me to do it anyway. So as I babied it, there it goes - POP! I looked up and knew right then I retore it. Now I somewhat consider this my fault; I knew better at 18 years old, I really should have just refused to do it but when a coach doesnt understand how is a kid supposed to do that? Do I disrespect because they dont respect me?

The scar on my knee has been extended with each surgery. Pins removed and replaced in other spots, hamstrings and patella tendons cut and pulled. As much as it broke my heart, and some things I found out with it as I tore it the first time - I wouldnt change it for the world! It was a freak accident, it was meant to be, it was meant to show me the kind of people I was surrounded by, and who I was. I would never want to be told that no one can ever throw that skill again because of my total freak accident!

The only one that bothers me is the last one. I just wish that coaches had training and understood that when a kid comes in with a 6" scar down the front of their leg and a 2 foot long metal brace with a hinge, they arent telling you they cant do it because they dont want to. If I didnt want to be there, trust me I wouldnt be - I use a tens machine and ice packs at night, I go into the sauna before I run because I hurt like hell, I wouldnt be doing that if I didnt want to be there.

 

[Alex]

I was on the verge of becoming a lvl 5 and retore my acl doing a full... It isnt about the level, its about the training, coaches, and conditioning. There isnt one person to blame usually, for me I shouldnt have rushed back and lied about how my knee felt, but my coach shouldve looked out for me when i limped all through every practice, and my surgeon shouldve understood waht i was trying to get back to when i said competative cheerleading...

 

[Bekah]

Not only are their bodies not used to dumbing down routines but a lot of people in the gymnastics community are arguing that the injuries were preventable. Apparently the producers wanted less matting that is regulation when these girls compete full routines. Even though they were dumbed down, there's no way they should have been dismounting the skills that close to concrete.

 

[AllstarErin]

As a coach, every injury should be a time to reflect on what we could have done to prevent it. Even if there it was a freak accident there is always something that can be learned or gained from it. All of the injuries on my team this year have been "freak" accidents so to speak. We have had two broken feet. One of them was doing a forwards walkover and one was doing a round-off (the girls had been doing these skills for years p.s). All it takes is twisting the foot the wrong way. This could happen anywhere outside of cheerleading just stepping off a step the wrong way etc. but it made me reflect on whether or not I needed to be doing more conditioning to strengthen my athletes and help prevent situations like these.

At the end of the day our sport is very high impact and while I do think a lot of the time safe progressions aren't utilized by cheerleading coaches injuries are going to happen.

I would love to see the USASF start educating Cheerleading coaches instead of just taking the skills away as if we have done something wrong?? Or how about a credentialing system that actually means something and is accompanied by standardized training (like gymnastics)?? It's coaches ignorance that is causing injuries in higher level skills not the skills themselves.