Olympic calmness or an attempt to hide the truth: what could be behind rumors about a stress fracture of Trusova's leg

Almost a week has passed since the first stage of the Grand Prix won by Alexandra Trusova in the USA. On Friday, the second series starts in Vancouver, but the Russian figure skater continues to be the most discussed figure, and not only among journalists. On Wednesday evening, even the doctor of football "Spartak" spoke about this, which only added to the situation of absurdity: when a medical specialist undertakes to publicly discuss such topics, not knowing the exact diagnosis and not seeing an athlete in his eyes, it is hardly possible to judge by his estimates the severity of the injury itself.

But let's think out loud: if the presence of a problem with a leg is known so widely (this was said in the news release of Channel One before the start of the tournament in the USA, and in Las Vegas, according to American journalists, the information about the injury was confirmed by the coach of the athlete Eteri Tutberidze ), then why continue to hide the diagnosis now?

There can be two options with such initial conditions: either the damage is not too serious to pay undue attention to it, or we are really talking about a stress fracture, as was said in one of the sources, and the coaching staff deliberately leaves the topic in order to avoid analogies with trauma Evgenia Medvedeva, who was diagnosed with a stress fracture of the fifth metatarsal bone in the fall of 2017. 

Why this topic is so painful for specialists is also understandable: a stress fracture is a specific trauma, arises exclusively from overload, that is, to a much greater extent it is the fault of the mentor, not the athlete. It requires long-term treatment and, in simple, not medical, language, has a cumulative effect: first you endure, then you start using a strong pain reliever, and then suddenly you realize that you need to keep going forward, but you cannot step on your foot. And the only question is whether the person has time for treatment or not.

True, so far there is no direct confirmation that Trusova's diagnosis is exactly the same as the one announced in the media.

Sasha had pain in his leg before: constantly twisting ankles are a chronic problem of many athletes performing quadruple jumps.

According to one of the sources, Sasha seriously injured her ankle at the preseason training camp in Novogorsk and did not skate at all for several days.

There is also logic in the fact that the injury has worsened right now: in September, the athlete had three starts in a row - at the open skates in Chelyabinsk, at the US Classic tournament in Boston and at the Russian Cup stage in Syzran, professional training during this period. was not, the load on the legs decreased, and against this background painful sensations could well go away and illusions arise that the injury was not too serious.

Knowing the character of the skater, it is easy to imagine with what zeal she began to make up for lost time in training before the second and much more responsible start in the USA.

And then she got a relapse.

Could it be?

Easy!

Are the coaches to blame for this?

More likely no than yes.

In theory, the mentor, of course, is obliged to control the degree of training loads, especially when it comes to athletes going through puberty: during this period, the athlete's growth zones open up and the bones become more vulnerable to injury.

It just doesn't work for Trusova: Sasha is used to independently determining both the number of quadruple jumps in the program and the intensity of their daily practice.

And I got used to endure.

The fact that in Las Vegas the skater was still persuaded to skate a free program with one quadruple instead of five means that the injury is really more than serious, despite the fact that Tatyana Tarasova, in her commentary on this, called the version with a broken foot “idiotic speculations and lies ”, and Inna Goncharenko refused in principle to reason before the official diagnosis of doctors.

In the end, the history of big-time sports knows a lot of examples when athletes went to the start with injuries incompatible with the performance of the task - and won.

Another question is that very few people manage to put such feats on stream.

It is especially dangerous to try to do this in the Olympic season, when the body of an athlete, as it gains shape, becomes especially vulnerable to illness and injury.

In this situation, the analogy with Evgenia Medvedeva suggests itself, and it seems that while the situation is working in Sasha's favor: she, unlike Zhenya, has not a month to eliminate the consequences of the injury, but at least two, but only if she is puzzled by the treatment directly now. But this may require sacrifice. For example, the refusal of the Grand Prix stage in Tokyo (it will be held on November 12-14), and this is not just an opportunity to qualify for the final and further strengthen the reputation in the eyes of the referees, but also quite solid prize money (it is possible that this is precisely why in November 2017, already experiencing severe pain in her leg, she did not refuse to participate in the Medvedev Grand Prix).

But Trusova, in fact, is in a much less advantageous position. At the time of the injury, Evgenia was insured by only one figure skater of an equal class - Alina Zagitova, and in addition, it was Zhenya who had the status of the only prima for the three previous years - both in the group and throughout the country. Almost the entire professional life of Eteri Tutberidze was invested in her, and not in Zagitova, therefore all possible and impossible resources were thrown into the recovery of the athlete before the 2018 Games.

Behind Trusova's back, only in her coach's group are now at least three equal rivals: Kamila Valieva, Maya Khromykh and Anna Shcherbakova. Plus - Alena Kostornaya and Daria Usacheva in the wings. It is possible to consider Sasha's advantage the same quadruple lutz, brilliantly (with a surcharge of 2.30) performed in Las Vegas, only with a stretch, since her free "Cruella" is put under five quads and in this regard is rather specific: if these jumps are removed, replacing with triple ones, unreasonably long visits and the associated voids immediately begin to rush into the eyes. Accordingly, the program itself loses a lot both in presentation and in the estimated cost. 

And the question immediately arises, which the athlete's coaching staff cannot but ask now: is Trusova really so valuable from the point of view of participation in the Olympic Games in her current state?

The answer, I'm afraid, may turn out to be completely different from what many fans of the skater want.