With the injury of Lindsey Vonn on Sunday during the downhill skiing event it brings up the question should athletes compete with injuries as she did. I would like to start this post off that the crash and the injury that happened to Lindsey was terrible and I wish her nothing but a speedy and good recovery. With that being said it is very common for athletes to try and compete with injuries and it should be asked, is it worth it?

Some people would say that yes it is, those that play injured show a toughness and grittiness that is needed for athletes of all levels to be able to compete at the high level that they do. And I agree that it does show a toughness that other people would only dream to be able to accomplish in their life. I know the pride that these athletes have, you work so hard and you become so good only for a little injury to take you out of the thing that you love. You feel bad not for yourself but for the team you are apart of or the fans that came and spent their hard earned money to be able to watch you play, you want to give that fan the experience of a lifetime that you would want for yourself. You don’t want to let your teammates down who worked just as hard as you to be in the place you are both in. I see that side of it and as someone who played high school baseball it killed me to have to sit out injured so I forced myself to play. And I only ended up hurting myself worse and many of these athletes also hurt themselves more.

The other side of it the side that I am more on the side of is the side of if you are hurt especially a bad injury you need to take the time off and heal. The reason for this side of the argument is that if you are hurt you cannot play at 100 percent and therefore you are hurting the team more than you are helping them. I do believe this many of the players that are injured while playing look injured and if you are not able to compete at 100 percent like the guys on your team and the guys on the other team then you are only hurting your team and hurting yourself more. Which is the next point that athletes that play injured are more likely to get more injured themself. And at the end of the day your own personal health is the most important thing in life. Get healthy and you can play a long time after you recover.

I believe that athletes should not play while having a bigger injury. Smaller injures like a sprained finger is one thing but a bigger injury something broken or torn need rest. It is important for athletes to take care of their bodies and to not put their own health on the line for their sport. Others on the team will rally around you and make sure that they play their best for you.