WOG: South Africa: Ross twists ankle on eve of Athens
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| South Africa |
August 2, 2004
BusinessDay
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Nerves were on a razor edge in the women's hockey team on the eve of the SA Olympic team's departure to Athens when it was touch and go for striker and link Bronwyn Ross who twisted her ankle during training yesterday morning.
Runners who arrived for the Olympic Day Run watched as a devastated Ross was carried to the medical office at the Pretoria University High Performance Centre yesterday after a suspected sprained ankle.
She twisted her foot while practising one-on-ones with goalkeeper Caroline Birt.
By this morning the Olympic medical team were still awaiting the results of a scan to establish the extent of the injury.
Should Ross lose her place through injury, she is likely to be replaced by either of Gauteng-based players Lunto Ntloko or Tsoanelo Pholo, both of whom are non-travelling reserves capable of playing in Ross's position as link to seasoned striker Pietie Coetzee up front.
Ross is the second injury scare to the women's hockey team who are highly rated to win an Olympic medal.
Only last week experienced defender Fiona Butler was ruled fit by the medical team after she had broken her finger.
Butler injured her finger during a training match against Korea in the Netherlands last month, but after having undergone surgery she had recovered quickly enough to be back in fine form by today when pins were removed from her finger.
Just as one problem was sorted out, a major one hit Ross.
"We will know before we depart for Athens tomorrow whether Bronwyn will be fit to travel with us or not," said Nocsa's media liaison person Faizal Dawjee.
"We are waiting for the medical staff to make their final assessment."
Nocsa president Sam Ramsamy has stated that injured athletes would not leave for Athens, unless there was every indication that they would be 100 percent fit for action by the time they had to compete.
"When you have a team of Olympians hitting peak form then there will obviously be snags and niggles along the way," Wayne Derman, professor of sports medicine at the University of Cape Town's Sports Science Institute said.
"At this level we are going to be kept on our toes, but we are confident of handling any situation, especially with our team that includes six top physiotherapists."
Among the snags are flu symptoms suffered by 400m hurdler Llewellyn Herbert who claimed bronze in Sydney 2000 and sprint kayaker Alan van Coller who finished eighth in the 500m final at the same Olympics.
Herbert was showing no symptoms by today and is fit to travel with the team to Athens, from where he will travel on to compete in the Weltklasse IAAF meeting in Zurich on Friday night.
Van Coller, who was showing the best form of his career in competition and training this year, was told to rest for three days.
He will leave later in the week with coach Nandor Almasi for Szegel in Hungary where he will meet his sprint training partner, 20-year-old Shaun Rubenstein who won the bronze medal in the world marathon championships in Norway at the weekend.
Rubenstein, who is working towards making the SA Olympic team to the Beijing Olympics in 2008, will work out with Van Coller and the Hungarian national team during the buildup to the kayaking events at Athens.
"Shaun is an amazing training partner," said Van Coller.
"He has really kept me at the edge of my form. I'll be training with him in Hungary before I travel to Athens in time for the 500m heats."
Van Coller will also race in the 1000m.
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