Leading up to the 2024 Paris Olympics, 16-year-old Teenage Skateboarder Sky Brown has been dealing with knee and shoulder injuries that have influenced her training and preparation. Despite these setbacks, she has shown remarkable grit, resilience, and a strategic approach to ensure she medaled at the Paris Olympics.
Knee injury:
Sky’s knee injury has been a significant challenge in her preparation for the 2024 Olympics, sustaining a full tear of her MCL in April while filming a video part.
Impact on Training: The knee injury would have required Sky to modify her training routine. Reducing the number of high-impact tricks in practice sessions and focusing more on low-impact exercises that maintain her skills without aggravating the injury alongside strengthening the muscles around the knee, particularly the quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves, would be a critical part of her rehabilitation and conditioning.
Rehabilitation: Improving the stability and strength of her knee, using techniques such as resistance training, balance exercises, and possibly aquatic therapy to reduce stress on the joint while maintaining fitness – would all be key techniques.
Shoulder injury
On top of this Sky sustained a further injury setback a week before competing dislocating her shoulder, which she is due to surgically repair following the conclusion of the Olympics.
Impact to Routine: reduced ability to perform certain types of tricks that involve heavy shoulder rotation or impact and focusing more on technical skills that were less demanding on the shoulder. “I wanted to bring out another trick, another few tricks, but dad didn’t want me to. [He] wanted to keep it a little safe”*
Competing in Paris 2024
Despite these injuries, Sky Brown has remained committed to her Olympic goal. During competition qualifying she was hit with further adversity, sustaining a heavy fall on the same dislocated shoulder causing it to briefly dislocate its socket again.
Hampered final preparations: While her competitors practiced and refueled, Sky spent the two hours before this skateboard park final receiving intense input from Team GB physios who massaged her shoulder and worked her arm, then iced it and taped it back up so it wouldn’t give out*
Albeit a watered-down routine under the wise instruction from her father Stu to play safe due to her injury, Sky won an extraordinary bronze medal showing incredible positivity and mental resilience to compete effectively under pressure, especially after dealing with all her injuries.
Sky brilliantly demonstrates the power of union between effective physiotherapy-led rehab and dedicated patient empowerment to their exercise regime and training and is truly inspirational, showing such bravery, commitment and a never-die attitude at such a young age. Well done Sky!
