Highlighting Hurt: A Dangerous Obsession

Does the glorification of playing through injury set a dangerous example?

Anyone who has played or followed sports in their life will know that injuries are inevitable. Athletes “running off their niggles” is commonplace, and medics seem almost as present on the rugby field as the players themselves. But the glorification of playing whilst injured has gone too far.

At the 1996 Summer Olympics, American gymnast Kerri Strug completed her second vault in the team final on a severely injured ankle. Concerns over the welfare of young athletes were raised, but triumph for the ‘Magnificent Seven’ in the face of adversity stole the headlines.

Fast forward to this summer’s England-India test series, and injuries are still being glorified in the press. Images of Chris Woakes batting one-handed after dislocating his shoulder, and Rishabh Pant hobbling out to bat after fracturing a bone in his foot, were gold dust for the newspapers. Rather than rest and recover, both athletes were pushed into the spotlight.

This issue is not confined to cricket. Lucy Bronze played the entirety of the Lionesses’ title-winning Euros campaign this summer with a fractured tibia, her tenacity lauded as heroic.  

Newspapers thrive on front-page photos of pain-drenched success; nothing sells like a wounded hero. Elite athletes may have top-level medical teams, but the way that injuries are being presented in the media to those less informed is dangerous.

As a currently injured athlete, I wish the narrative were different. Perhaps I was bound to sustain my injury when I did, but I certainly felt as if pushing through the pain would be a commendable triumph. 

This is, of course, not the case. I was left frustrated, dealing with disappointed parents, a shocked physio, and a lack of sporting pursuits throughout my early university years.  

The hold that Wednesday night sports socials and Sinners have on the student community is no doubt already clear to the incoming crop of freshers. Being injured does not mean missing out on a Wednesday night, but it does mean missing out on the group meet-ups at the Sports Centre, and being left out of the sporting community pursued by such a big proportion of the student body.

For many, sport is the only way to offload and forget about the struggles of academia. An injury can leave a massive hole in one’s university experience if not treated properly.

Injuries are part and parcel of sport — a reality that the majority of athletes face at some point — but playing through an injury should not be glorified. Athletes should not be pressured by the media, cultural expectations, or coaching environments to push through their injuries.

Those at the recreational or student level are left with media portrayals of professionals ‘heroically’ playing through injury. These narratives can be dangerous, reinforcing a culture that equates pain with pride. We need a shift — one that values long-term health over short-term headlines. 

 Image from Wikimedia Commons