Sports that cause the most injuries
In this article we’re looking at some mainstream sports that are particularly injury prone. Unlike sports like bull riding, a lot of these are not dangerous sports but they are high on the list of injuries.
Equestrian Sports
Flat racing, national hunt, showjumping, eventing and polo all involved sitting on top of a beautiful animal that can weigh more than 8 times a human. Any fall from a horse can be serious but moving at high speed when falling or mid jump can be really series, especially if the horse lands on you! No matter how much padding and protection you may be wearing, it is very hard to predict a fall or a slight stutter from a horse,
Skiing
Winter sport in general and performed on sleds, skates and ski’s, the nature of these sliders on ice means a lot of speed, and the faster you go the more injury prone the sport is.
Anyone who has been skiing knows the risks involved and in most groups that go away skiing, at least one person comes back injured. Broken bones, sprains, dislocations, concussion and bruising as all common injuries, and if you like downhill skiing which is one of the fastest non motorised sports in the world then prepare for some big falls!
It’s cousin, Snowboarding may be much slower than skiing but that doesnt make it less injury prone, snowboarders spend a lot of time on their bums due to falls so wrists, shoulders, and ankle injuries are very common among snowboarders.
Basketball
Probably a surprise to many, but for a non contact sport, there is a lot of contact in basketball! Like and fast paced game, basketball relies on quick acceleration and deceleration, the nature of these impact moves results in common muscle and ligament damage. Constant jumping and playing on hardwood floors can make for pretty sore falls but injuries are usually minor, mostly sprains and strains. The ankle and knee are the most common sites of injury, followed by the lower back, hand, and wrist.
The most common sports injuries
Rugby
Rugby is a dangerous sport and similar to other full contact sports, the game is relentless when it comes to injuries. Rugby requires huge skill but also requires physical strength, brute power and ability to endure knocks and whacks for best part of 80 minutes. Scrums, mauls, breakdowns and high speed tackles can result in all the usual sports injuries + concussions, torn ligaments, dislocated shoulders and even tetraplegia
Rugby is also one of the most concussion prone sports.
American Football
Similar to rugby NFL is a game of constant collisions, they maybe must better protected than rugby players with lots of padding and helmets, but the game is still a plethora of injuries due to big hits. We can add Australian football, and the Irish sports – Gaelic football and Hurling in here too which are all full contact sports.
Ice Hockey / Field Hockey
Both hockeys on our list are 2 of the most physically demanding sports, they are also two of the fastest field sports.
Playing Ice hockey involves skating at high speeds on a rock hard ice rink, so any fall can be very painful. Secondly the speed at which you skate chasing a lightening fast puk can result in big collisions. Broken bones, torn ligaments and concussion are pretty standard ice hockey injuries. Then of course there’s the standard mid fight punch ups, which can result in bruised faces and egos!
Field Hockey is played with hockey stick, a rock hard ball on a very fast surface, making hockey one of the fastest field sports. The speed of the game means a huge amount of running during matches. Also players may have to play up to 3 matches a week during competition, resulting in a lot of wear and tare on the body. Muscle and ligament damage are common as are bruises from ball and stick hits.
Lacrosse
Another very fast non contact field sport that often results in collisions. Sharp cutting, turning and dodging movements required to play lacrosse can result in injuries such as – Ankle and knee sprains, ligament sprains and muscular or tendon strains are the most common.
Boxing
The sole goal of this sport is to punch someone in the head and hopefully knock them out! So it doesnt come as a surprise that boxing is a dangerous sport. The training itself is rigorous and takes its toll on the body, so muscle damage can be common as well as broken bones in the hands. Being hit constantly in boxing means a lot of cuts, bruises and concussion is an unfortunate common injury in boxing.
MMA
Similar to boxing the gaol in MMA is to beat your opponent but in MMA involves beating your opponent by any means possible €“ kicks, knees, elbow and punches are all fair game, enough said! Through out the history of the UFC there have been some real nasty injuries caught on camera including broken legs!
Motocross / BMX / Mountain Biking
Due to the high speed nature of Motocross and Moto GP serious injuries and even death are common. Any sport where you go fast on bikes can be dangerous but once you include obstacles, ramps, jumps and downhill racing, things can get pretty hairy. All 3 of the above biking sports are pretty famous for nasty injuries.
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