Time off, bad luck could have led to Riders' Achilles injuries, says sports doctor
Five Riders have suffered an Achilles injury in the month leading up to the return of the CFL.
Defensive lineman Tim Williams sustained his injury during training camp on July 23, this Achilles rupture comes after four other players suffered the injury during a workout session before camp began.
“I’ve never seen that many Achilles injuries ever and so to lose another one is really, really tough,” said head coach Craig Dickenson.
Dickenson called the phenomenon a “head scratcher,” but is attributing the increase in the injury to the time away.
“I think the layoff… that’s I think, that’s the X factor.”
Dr. Jordan Anderson, sport medicine physician at Prairie Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, agrees and said a big factor has to do with being away.
Despite working hard to stay in football shape over the break, Dr. Anderson said jumping back in to a season is a bit more than their bodies can handle.
“I think the stress that they’re putting through their bodies, and through their Achilles, is a little more than they have been able to prepare for,” he explained.
“I don’t think that’s anyone’s fault, I think that’s just the nature of losing a season.”
He said he believes the coaches, trainers and athletic therapists are doing everything right when it comes to training, drills and conditioning, but even with the season away, an event like this still requires a lot of bad luck.
“I think they’re doing a really good job at trying to get these guys ready for a season, and especially without a preseason, you have to push these guys to get ready,” Dr. Anderson said.
Dickenson is “knocking on wood” this was the final Achilles injury, but understands, unfortunately, injuries happen when players are being explosive.
Dr. Anderson said this is the first he’s heard from anyone in any sport of five Achilles injuries in such a short period of time.
“It’s something that we’ve all been following very closely and it’s unfortunate, but hopefully once the season gets started there’s fewer and fewer of these issues so, fingers crossed.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 employees across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.