Any news on Alissa Czisny?

[5Ali3]

Was it a simple or complicated dislocation (torn nerves, etc)? If simple she could possibly be ok for nationals although she might not want to take the risk.

Okay for Nationals as in the Nationals that start a week from today? I didn't even bother to ask, so please don't take this comment as any kind of word on her withdrawal, but we're talking about an injury that typically requires 1-2 weeks before any passive movement of the joint (such as a physical therapist moving the leg without any resistance or help from the patient) and longer before the patient can attempt active movement.

The number of injuries this year is very disturbing.

Labral tears are becoming endemic among skaters, including regional-level skaters at lower levels. Thirty years ago, I knew all the treatments for ripped blisters; now I've spoken to enough athletes/parents who have undergone surgery for labral tears of the hip that I know details about the various surgeons and how their protocols differ. That disturbs me.

[4rkidz]

Okay for Nationals as in the Nationals that start a week from today? I didn't even bother to ask, so please don't take this comment as any kind of word on her withdrawal, but we're talking about an injury that typically requires 1-2 weeks before any passive movement of the joint (such as a physical therapist moving the leg without any resistance or help from the patient) and longer before the patient can attempt active movement.

Labral tears are becoming endemic among skaters, including regional-level skaters at lower levels. Thirty years ago, I knew all the treatments for ripped blisters; now I've spoken to enough athletes/parents who have undergone surgery for labral tears of the hip that I know details about the various surgeons and how their protocols differ. That disturbs me.

not just figure skating, also an increase in speed skating and in hockey.. many sports are getting so much more competitive and now developing bodies are training 7 days a week and their developing bodies struggle.. its become the osgood schlatter's disorder for this generation..

[AxelAnnie]

I suspect anyathlete training in elite level of any sport is "abusing" their body. I heard a statistic on the tv yesterday that the most sports injuries in high school are in cheer leading! OK that was a surprise.

I suspect bodies are not designed to be "trained" at the level that is required to compete on the elite level in anything. Gosh, even our horses take a beating. We have a saying at my barn "a horse only has so many jumps in him.........use them wisely", and it is true. Gotta be true for people, too.

[2sk8]

Gosh, even our horses take a beating. We have a saying at my barn "a horse only has so many jumps in him.........use them wisely", and it is true. Gotta be true for people, too.

It would be a great improvement in figure skating training if more coaches thought the same about the kids they worked with as those who are working with these horses! I am also aware of what seems to be an alarming number of such injuries in Regional/Sectional level skaters - innumerable stress fractures (back especially), Osgood Schlatters, osteochondritis dissecans in joints on landing side, labral tears, and so on - if the techinical ante is going to keep going up, training "smart", not quantity is going to matter even more.

[LilJen]

I hope this isn't the case, but it may be that her hips are just "off" enough to have made hip injuries eventually inevitable. I'm thinking of Morgan Matthews, who did ice dance for many years at a really high level but eventually was forced to retire due to a congenital (from birth) hip condition, ie, her hips were just set in the socket in a ever-so-slightly wacky way as to make it impossible for her to return.

[victoriaheidi]

I suspect anyathlete training in elite level of any sport is "abusing" their body. I heard a statistic on the tv yesterday that the most sports injuries in high school are in cheer leading! OK that was a surprise.

This has nothing to do with the main point of the thread, so pardon my diversion: cheerleading can be an incredibly risky sport. Their formations open themselves up to boatloads of injuries (think: girls falling on each other's heads) and can be very serious. It's also a sport that few automatically think of as risky, which is unfortunate for the cheerleaders because people underestimate the potential for injury. But when you have girls flying and expect other girls to catch them, you've got some potentially dangerous situations on your hands.

Otherwise, I'm hoping Alissa is feeling physically ok. I honestly hope that, no matter how much I want to see her at the Olympics, she listens to her doctors and makes the choice that will keep her the healthiest for the longest time. Life is so much more than just skating, especially for someone as dedicated and charming as Alissa. She's a college graduate, too! There are tons of opportunities for her if skating is no longer an option, and I hope she gets to have those experiences.

[maatTheViking]

I think there is a tendency to train too hard, too early (not saying Alissa has done this, but as a general comment on the thread)

I read about a local high school quarterback who won some high school player/quarterback of the year award thingy. He accelerated his diploma so he could start at the University that recruited him a semester early - to help gel with the team, get a head start of his college career etc. I find is so disturbing the level of sport his body is going to be doing - I assume as a high school senior he is 16, 17? As far as I know, the male body physically peaks at 20-22, so it seems pretty young to be training. The pictures of all those high school athletes are pretty insane too, they all look so much older than they are due to their muscling.


In any case, we don't know if this is the case with Alissa at all, I don't know her pace of training at all. For all we know it could be totally unrelated to her previous injury, and something that could happen to anyone.

I wish her the best of recovery, and I hope she will have a full recovery.

so sad

[MR-FAN]

*Strong Hug for Alissa*

[michiruwater]

A high school senior would typically be 17 or 18.

[AndyWarhol]

This has nothing to do with the main point of the thread, so pardon my diversion: cheerleading can be an incredibly risky sport. Their formations open themselves up to boatloads of injuries (think: girls falling on each other's heads) and can be very serious. It's also a sport that few automatically think of as risky, which is unfortunate for the cheerleaders because people underestimate the potential for injury. But when you have girls flying and expect other girls to catch them, you've got some potentially dangerous situations on your hands.

Otherwise, I'm hoping Alissa is feeling physically ok. I honestly hope that, no matter how much I want to see her at the Olympics, she listens to her doctors and makes the choice that will keep her the healthiest for the longest time. Life is so much more than just skating, especially for someone as dedicated and charming as Alissa. She's a college graduate, too! There are tons of opportunities for her if skating is no longer an option, and I hope she gets to have those experiences.

I saw this cheer leading documentary and a girl got like 4 teeth knocked out by a flyer. She continued the routine. ahhhg.

[Zemgirl]

Absolutely agree. Elite skaters and dancers for that matter do abuse their bodies. Recall Alexei Yagudin's quote that if he wakes up in the morning and nothing hurts, it means he died? Same Yagudin who had a hip replacement in his 20s. Studies show that ballet dancers have lower bone density than the general population, let alone injuries, arthritis and a multitude of other sacrifices.

We should be grateful that someone is willing to push their bodies to the limit for the sake of the beautiful sport that is figure skating. We get to enjoy the fruits of their exceptionally grueling labor.

Indeed. That's what I was getting at in my previous post, which Susan for some reason objected to: that skaters specifically and athletes in general make a lot of sacrifices, including in terms of their health, and so when something like this happens, it's better to express sympathy than to criticize them for competing and pushing themselves.

I read about a local high school quarterback who won some high school player/quarterback of the year award thingy. He accelerated his diploma so he could start at the University that recruited him a semester early - to help gel with the team, get a head start of his college career etc. I find is so disturbing the level of sport his body is going to be doing - I assume as a high school senior he is 16, 17? As far as I know, the male body physically peaks at 20-22, so it seems pretty young to be training. The pictures of all those high school athletes are pretty insane too, they all look so much older than they are due to their muscling.

A high school senior would be 17-18, and I would assume starting a semester early would allow him to take part in spring practices, and he might turn 19 by the time the season starts. BTW, a lot of college football players are redshirted their freshman year (they can't play, but still practice and go to class). Most college quarterbacks are probably in their early 20s, you don't see a lot of true freshmen in that position.

[paskatefan]

Thanks for the contact info - e-mail & snail mail!

[misskarne]

What horrible news. I hope poor Alissa is able to heal properly and there are no complications. I wish her all the very best!

There was an NRL player for the Wests Tigers who last season, dislocated his hip while playing (against my Raiders - and it was a nothing tackle). That was in Round 3. I think it took him four or five months to be back to almost-playing condition, and that was with some wacky surgery.

[TAHbKA]

Fast recovery to Czisny.

[loulou]

And sorry what happened to Korpi?

Out of Europeans. It's her achilles, if I recall correctly. Some are thinking she might call it career. I love Korpi's and Lepisto's competitive skating so much, I'm bummed.

I heard a statistic on the tv yesterday that the most sports injuries in high school are in cheer leading! OK that was a surprise.

I used to know this. I'm not sure my sources are up to date, but last I checked not only cheer leading had more injuries, but it also had the worse outcomes from injuries.

[jiggs]

Is there any official news/confirmation on the status of her injury? I hope it's not too serious

[kwanatic]

Good lord, that is terrible.

This is where it gets dangerous for skaters who are older. You get one injury, and then another and another...it's basically you're body's way of telling you enough. If it is an unrelated injury that's even worse. If she'd re-injured herself you could say "oh, she just over-trained the injury and should rest" but this looks unrelated which means her body doesn't appear to be holding up as well.

It's sad and I definitely feel her pain. It reminds me of Michelle when she was shooting for Torino. She'd had an injury, recovered, was ready to skate but then injured herself again. It's the same thing for Alissa. Her mind wants to compete but her body isn't cooperating.

Obviously she'll take the rest of the season off (I don't see her fit to skate in the next two weeks) and hopefully taking off the rest of the season and the summer will be good for her. Maybe she'll be able to do a few lower level competitions and possibly earn herself an invite to a GP event (I'm not 100% sure of the selection process).

If not and she decides to retire, she should have no regrets. I think 2011 was her peak year. She skated strongly, won the GPF and nationals and had her best placement at worlds...she didn't give up and proved to everyone that she does have it in her. Right now she needs to focus on her health outside of skating...

I wish her the best.

[Kathryn2001]

Maybe I missed it, but does someone have a video of her SP?

[Sylvia]

Maybe I missed it, but does someone have a video of her SP?

Local TV video of her "La Vie En Rose" SP on Friday: http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/sport...01&status=true

SP video filmed from the stands:

Alissa's short program from the competition this weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBUWG...ature=youtu.be

She landed a gorgeous triple lutz, double toe combination in the warm-up but had some trouble with the landing of the triple lutz in the actual program. Other than that, she skated a clean program and was gorgeous as usual!

Is there any official news/confirmation on the status of her injury?

No article or press release by USFS yet (hopefully by later today?).

[Maofan7]

Here is a article by Jackie Wong from The Examiner. It reads:-

Yesterday afternoon, two-time U.S. champion Alissa Czisny took a rough fall on a triple flip during a pre-Nationals performance of her free skate at the Fox Cities Invitational in Appleton, Wisconsin. Details have not emerged as to the extent of her injury, but it looked to be a possibly serious injury, as she was unable to leave the ice by herself after the fall.

Czisny has been on the road to recovery since having surgery on her left hip over the summer. She was slated to return to competition in November for the NHK Trophy, but she withdrew to give herself more time to prepare. Her appearance at Fox Cities was a warmup leading up to Nationals. Further details on her injury and what it means for Nationals to come.