Rio Olympics 2016: Olympic Injuries Are Common Hazards To Sports Competition, But Athletes Suffer Worse In Recovery

Could the Rio Olympics 2016 be the most dangerous for the athletes? It's only been days, but several Olympic injuries have already happened among the participants of the event. Viewers have seen the incidents happen live on television and the images are not for the weak of heart.

Mirror has listed down injuries that have taken place in the first week of Rio Olympics 2016. While some can be attributed to the hazards of being in a sports competition, the news outlet pointed out that the injuries could have been avoided with proper planning. Below are the Olympic injuries so far:

Vincenzo Nibali, broken collarbone - bike race
Annemiek van Vleuten, fractures - bike race
Samir Ait Said, leg break -  men's vault competition
Andreas Toba, ligament rupture - men's vault competition
Ellie Downie, fell on her neck - gymnastics routine
Melissa Hoskins, hospitalized after crash - velodrome cycling

However, experts note that these Olympic injuries are not outside of the ordinary. According to Dr. Lars Engebretsen from the Olympic committee, the same frequency of injuries have also occurred in past Olympics, at 13 or 14 injuries per 100 athletes, per CNN.

Engebresten also notes that Olympic injuries are more common during the winter games rather than the summer games like the Rio Olympics 2016. The most common type of Olympic injury is overuse injury, where athletes feel soreness, tenderness and pain in their body because it has been subjected to stress. To manage this, Olympians resort to massages, cupping, needling or ice baths.

Such is the nature of competitive sports and Olympians in training know the dangers fully well. However, physically getting hurt is not the worst that could happen to the athletes. Those recovering from Olympic injuries are more challenged by the psychological effects that could trigger depression, especially since they are used to having a strong body, per Medical Daily. 

In some cases, recovery is a slow process that might mean the delay or end of their dreams and it could also be financially draining. These Olympians go through a lot for the chance to compete, but this only highlights why these athletes are indeed called champions who deserve the gold, silver and bronze.