US gold medalists Maroney and Raisman injured on tour
Disclaimer: As of the time of this posting, there was no official news from USA Gymnastics, so please take all of this info – which comes mostly from spectators and some tour staff – with a grain of salt. We will update with USAG’s statement when they post.
11:20 p.m. EST: Maroney posted a photo on Instagram, commenting: “I’m finally leaving the hospital!!!! #peaceout.” Her left knee is heavily braced and she has a pair of crutches in tow. Still no official word on her diagnosis or how long she’ll be kept from the tour, but we’re wishing her a speedy recovery!
2:01 p.m. EST: USAG has just released a statement regarding the injuries sustained by Maroney and Raisman:
Raisman, who was examined at the arena by the physician for the performance, has bruised knees. She will follow an icing and additional treatment regimen with continued assessment by the medical staff, but does not require any further testing at this time.
Maroney is undergoing medical evaluations and tests today to determine the extent of her injury to her left knee. A further update will be provided once Maroney’s injury is diagnosed and confirmed.
1:41 p.m. EST: According to Boston.com, Raisman’s injury is minor and she has already joined the rest of her cast in San Diego, where she will continue on as scheduled in this Thursday’s performance.
1:28 p.m. EST: We heard from a source that Raisman hyperextended her back when she landed awkwardly after peeling from the bar on her Shaposhnikova Maloney; her knees are also apparently “sore” but not seriously hurt. Maroney spent the night in the hospital after a long wait in the ER last night, according to a source who added that she looked to be in good spirits. Her leg is in a brace though there is still no confirmation as to her official diagnosis or whether either will be able to continue when the tour resumes later this week.
1:22 a.m. EST: Tumblr user ukelele-hero was at the performance and recounted her story on her blog:
“So there are two uneven bars set up and each of the girls are doing little mini routines. They’re all doing it simultaneously, and every time one girl dismounted from the bars the next one was right up there doing their thing. I looked over just when McKayla landed (feet apart and sort of crouched if I recall correctly) and she either fell right after she landed or took a hop and then fell. Either way she was on the ground and she wasn’t really getting back up. Aly (who was preparing for her turn on bars) came over to see if she was ok. Two medics noticed that Mack was down so they came running over, she must have said she was hurt because they both picked her up between them and carried her out of the arena.
Picture c/o ukelele-hero
Aly was up so she went on (she might have been doing a sort of synchronized routine with Gabby who was on the other one) but during one of the releases onto the high bar (or off of, I was watching Gabby at the time) I’m guessing she didn’t catch it because I saw her fall and land on the mat behind the higher bar, only there wasn’t enough mat behind it because when she landed face first, her legs smacked against the concrete floor of the arena behind it. I could hear it from where I was sitting. I’m pretty sure my heart stopped.
Thankfully Aly (being the trooper that she is) got up and walked over to one of the chalk bowls but after a short time (I think she might have been talking to the person who was also at the chalk bowl) she walked out of the arena, to I assume the medics.”
12:41 a.m. EST: It seems that attempting to compensate for her existing injury is the reason McKayla Maroney had problems tonight. Apparently Maroney was feeling pain in her injured leg and fudged her landing while trying to avoid weight-bearing; we also heard from several fans who attended the performance in San Jose last night that the apparatuses are not on a podium (meaning the surface is a bit harder, making landings more forceful) and that a lack of padding around the uneven bars and floor mat resulted in a few “close calls” on awkward or out-of-bounds landings.
11:38 p.m. EST: The Kellogg’s Tour of Gymnastics Champions must go on, despite the injury of two of its stars.
Details are still coming to us straight from the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, Calif., so what we know is a bit fuzzy, but an awkward photo of the Olympic rings minus McKayla Maroney and Aly Raisman can attest to the injuries sustained by both athletes only two days into the 2.5 month tour.
As we reported on Facebook, Maroney and Raisman both had bad falls on the uneven bars early in the performance and haven’t returned to the floor for the remainder of the show. Maroney, who was shown with a heavily taped leg in rehearsals after injuring her fibula, landed a flyaway dismount from the uneven bars and from the details we’ve received, it seems that it’s related to her current injury and is apparently “serious.” Raisman also fell on bars, on her Shaposhnikova Maloney, landing on her stomach and smacking her legs hard against the weakly-padded floor. She immediately left the floor (walking unassisted, whereas Maroney was carried out by medics), though her status remains unknown.
There’s a big difference between the level of fitness required for elite competition compared to performing on tour, so it’s likely that being out of “elite shape” combined with weeks of busy rehearsals, traveling, talk show appearances, and lack of sleep contributed to the injuries for both. It’s also no secret that bars isn’t the strongest event for either of these athletes; although the skills performed were at a lesser difficulty than either athlete normally competes and are skills they’ve probably done hundreds of times without a single issue, it’s clear not being in full competitive shape limited their ability to perform them effectively.
We will keep you updated with the status of both athletes as we find out more information.
The next stop on the tour is in San Diego, Calif., on Thursday, Sept. 13, giving the athletes a few days of rest…which is hopefully all they’ll need.
Article by Lauren Hopkins
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22 Comments
Christine
I’m veeeeery interested to hear that it wasn’t a podium…but also, that it was the same set of bars. Was there something particularly wrong with that set of padding or bars?
Also, neither Aly nor McKayla are known for bars prowess (and Aly’s case, everyone–including her–acknowledges that it is her one major weakness). I’m concerned about the safety of having two exhausted athletes do a difficult apparatus in a poorly-lit arena with no podium. That just strikes me as begging for an injury…which we now have.
10 Sep 2012 05:09 am (@Twitter)
Stephen
I saw McKayla at the San Antonio Community Hospital Emergency room tonight. The Emergency room was so full that McKayla was on a gurney in the hall, but she was admitted for her injury. She seemed to be in good spirits as they rolled her to her room.
10 Sep 2012 08:09 am (@Twitter)
Ana
omg! That pic with just three girls is horrible! They should had change that part!
10 Sep 2012 11:09 am (@@anacossani)
Name christina
That’s sad and I hope they get well soon and don’t miss lots of shows but I can’t help but wonder: Why the hell are Aly and McKayla doing bars? I suppose we should put Nastia, Li, Vega and Chellsie on vault, Horton and Dalton on pommels, Asac on bars, Ebee on beam, oh and Julie Zetlin should try bars too. Why not?
10 Sep 2012 12:09 pm (@Twitter)
NameUnivRhythm
Video of the injuries. Wow, they were both hurt within less than 1 minute. Aly’s crash seemed pretty mild for an elite gymnast but amplified due to the lack of adequate padding. McKayla’s injury looks like it also could have been related to inadequate padding. It seems like she may have been reacting to the edge of the padding, it appears there is only about a foot between where her feet land and solid concrete. Perhaps all she could see was concrete! You can see Aly trying to fix McKayla’s padding during her routine and then coming to her aid, what a good friend.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p5HVanlmuQ
10 Sep 2012 01:09 pm (@Twitter)
dsa
Watching the vid, it appears that McKayla’s probably could have been expected- at least at some point, given she already has a broken leg. So I blame whoever choreographed her doing the flyaway. Yes, I’m sure she’s done them millions of times before, but also probably not only those lights.
Aly’s looks like more of fluke- it appears she caught the bar and then peeled. It does look like the mats are the full length used in JO- not sure. But why wasn’t there a spotter for this? They might not have prevented it, but a spotter might have been able to catch Aly. (and anyone else who makes a mistake) Doubt they would have been able to help McKayla though.
My guess is that Aly will be back next weekend, but McKayla may be more restricted.
10 Sep 2012 01:09 pm (@Twitter)
Holly
That padding situation is an injury waiting to happen. These ladies may not be doing full level elite difficulty, but they are still doing tricks that people fall on – even just as a fluke – at awkward angles and high rates of speed. I mean, c’mon – I had more padding that that when I was a gymnast struggling my way through learning kips and front hip circles. That is just ridiculous.
10 Sep 2012 02:09 pm (@Twitter)
Helena
they are getting heavier and out of shape.
10 Sep 2012 04:09 pm (@Twitter)
redheadedgirl
Honestly, the schedule for this tour is grueling, and they’ve barely ahd a chance to recover from the Olympics. Combine all of that with apparently really crappy safety standards, and it was pretty inevitable. I know they want to capitalize on everything before something else shiny takes attention away, but this is a terrible idea with some obviously terrible consequences.
10 Sep 2012 06:09 pm (@Twitter)
Christian
I think we should all cheer ourselves up with the news that Louis Smith is going on Strictly Come Dancing!
10 Sep 2012 06:09 pm (@Twitter)
Sarah
This is sad. McKayla and Jordyn both have stress fractures. Should they even be on the tour? I know it’s a window of opportunity to make money, but when will their injuries get time to heal? McKayla could have (and maybe did, still waiting to hear results of tests) permanently injured herself. Hard to say the deal with Aly. Maybe she was just shaken up seeing her teammate carried off, but shame on those organizers and their lack of safety. There is no excuse for a gymnast landing on concrete.
On another note, this video, the pictures, and what people have said about this tour make it sound like a silly show. The costumes alone are enough to make me save my money. I would much rather spend it on a real competition, but each unto their own.
10 Sep 2012 07:09 pm (@Twitter)
Cecile
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p5HVanlmuQ
This is how it happened…
10 Sep 2012 09:09 pm (@Twitter)
Liliana
so, as i thought, and judging by the planning of their performances, this actually is like some sort of circus tour. i don’t know if the girls understand what they’ve gotten into, but, if not, whoever planned it in these conditions doesn’t even care about hte gymnasts’ safety
10 Sep 2012 09:09 pm (@Twitter)
MM
Are the gymnasts coaches there? and if not, who is coaching them?
also who is rehabbing them?
AND WHO SIGNED OFF ON SAFETY MEASURES?
11 Sep 2012 01:09 am (@Twitter)
Lara
Well, who would want to pay any money to watch Raisman on bars anyway?
Couldn’t the organizers have put her on floor only?
11 Sep 2012 03:09 am (@Twitter)
Liliana
well, that, obviously, was a mistake/musjudgement from the judges. rememeber raisman higher than Komova or Mustafina on bars? insane.
anyway, i hope she's ok
12 Sep 2012 08:09 pm (@Twitter)
NameUnivRhythm
Aly Raisman scored higher than 56 other gymnasts on the bars at the 2012 Olympics in London. The highest level of competition possible in this sport.
Source: http://usagym.org/PDFs/Results/w_12olympics_qual.pdf
Also her bars skills we sufficient enough to beat out 89,996 registered gymnasts in the United States for a place on the 2012 Olympic Team.
Source: http://usagym.org/pages/aboutus/pages/about_usag.html
I will be honored to watch Aly when she comes to my town.
12 Sep 2012 03:09 am (@Twitter)
Sami
The Fragile Five?
12 Sep 2012 12:09 pm (@SempreSami)
L
Where are their coaches? And why are they competing on concrete?!
16 Sep 2012 12:09 am (@Twitter)
admin
The coaches don't go on tour with the athletes. They have trainers who get them through workouts while on tour, but their coaches are back at their club gyms. They're not competing on concrete, but have J.O. regulation mats. I think the reasoning for J.O. mats was because they're not doing legit dismounts, just flyaways. But they ARE doing elite skills ON the bars, so...I don't know why it would be such a big deal to have elite-regulation mats. After Aly's fall, they said she'd move to the set of bars with more padding...but I really don't understand why ALL of the bars (and the area around the floor exercise) can't be padded! -Lauren
16 Sep 2012 05:09 am
Yana
Why do american gymnasts have to go to these stupid tours ? They are just dancing and dancing around with stupid and dumb choreographs. yes and they are getting out of shape as well
17 Sep 2012 01:09 pm (@Twitter)