The Russian Gymnastics Federation now confirms that Aliya Mustafina tore her left ACL and strained her MCL. She will miss the World Championships. This is a huge blow to Mustafina, the Russian Team and the sport.
Mustafina will undergo surgery in Munich.
Blythe Lawrence wrote a good piece on Aliya and her injury. It was written when they were still claiming it was a torn meniscus.
I don't know if there is a sadder day in modern day gymnastics
ReplyDeleteI hope they're not rushing her into surgery. You normally wait for the MCL tear to heal and then do surgery on the ACL. Operating on both only increases your chances on infection and makes it harder to get back into PT after surgery...For her sake,I hope her MCL wasn't really affected.
ReplyDeleteI never know what to believe when these stories come out of Mother Russia. Komova's ankle was initially sprained, then we learned there was a fracture involved.
ReplyDeleteThe most recent article from IG states a torn ACL, but only a strained MCL, so perhaps that is why they are doing the surgery this soon.
ReplyDeleteThey should be looking internationally for the best surgical option and quickly, not just whomever happens to be in close proximity
ReplyDeleteAt least the competition was in Germany and not a developing country. Germany is extremely advanced technologically and I'm sure their surgeons are world class.
ReplyDeleteI've torn my ACL (as have several of my friends) and you're not supposed to have surgery right away. Instead, you're supposed to strengthen the knee and then have surgery to make the recovery process go more quickly. If the meniscus is not damaged, she is luckily as the knee often has to be immobilized for 3-6 weeks following repair, making it more difficult to gain back a full range of motion. Instead, she might be a candidate for continuous passive motion treatment immediately following surgery, which also speeds the recovery process.
ReplyDeleteAnon 2:04, they're going to Munich for the surgery, that tells me that they're studying their options carefully. They're not just going to the free clinic down the street--Munich to Berlin is a pretty decent road trip. It is interesting (although not at all surprising) that they're having the operation in Germany. I hope she gets the medical care she needs to make it to the Olympics next year, what a disaster it would be for her and Russia if she didn't.
ReplyDeleteAliya should get CPM right after surgery... hell, I had CPM after mine and I'm not an elite athlete.
ReplyDeleteShe'll be fine, but I bet we won't see that 2.5 again. Then again, Mustafina is tough as nails, so who knows.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'm surprised it took this long for someone to bust their knee on an Amanar.
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