I’ll admit it, I’m as caught up in March Madness as most of the US is right now. Yet every time I watch that Kevin Ware injury* I can’t help but wonder how a lot of these men and women will be feeling when they’re an old lady like me (in their early thirties).
I chose the path of college sports as much as it chose me, yet as a four-year, Division I, NCAA college athlete myself, I sometimes still can’t pick things up or even change the radio dial with my right arm due to rotator cuff pain. Now I don’t expect anything in return from my alma mater — I’d do it all over again even knowing what I know now — but I’m able to find care for myself while a lot of ex-athletes cannot.
The New York Times‘ Bill Pennington wrote a really great piece on the vulnerability of college athletes even when they’re injured mid-sport. It seems like even Congress is aware of what a problem this is — maybe it will be the one thing they agree about in 2013.
*Warning: If you aren’t aware of what I’m speaking of, you may not want to watch — it is by far the most gruesome leg break I’ve ever seen.
(Image under Creative Commons license by McMorgan.)