What is known about this topic: Elite athletes receive many health benefits, but face a high risk of musculoskeletal injuries and other diseases during and after their athletic careers.
What does this study add? Overall, 9% and 4% of athletes, respectively, suffered at least one injury or illness during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Boxing (27 percent), cycling (27 percent), freestyle cycling (22 percent), skateboarding (21 percent), karate (19 percent) and handball (18 percent) were the sports with the highest incidence of injuries.
COVID-19 and the hot and humid conditions posed considerable challenges for athletes and the organization of the Games, but both were mitigated through a combination of countermeasures.
How does this study impact research, practice or policy? Athlete medical staff and event organizers can plan and optimize their healthcare services based on the diagnoses and risk profiles of the athlete population and, more importantly, develop preventive measures.
What are the implications of the triple challenge of the Tokyo Olympic Games in the summer of 2021, with its new program, COVID-19 and thermal environment, on the risk of injury (injuries) and disease (illnesses) faced by athletes? The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has released its latest assessment of sports injuries and illnesses for the Tokyo Games.
The 11,315 athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees who participated in the Tokyo Games had 1,035 injuries and 438 illnesses reported by their medical teams over the 17-day event. That’s an average of about nine injuries and four illnesses for every 100 athletes. While the new crown outbreak affected 18 athletes (less than 0.2%), the overall illness rate was less than in previous years.
Table 1. Proportion (%) of athletes with injuries, injuries with estimated time loss ≥ 1 day, and injuries with estimated time loss > 7 days in each sport.
Table 2. percentage of athletes with illness, illnesses with estimated time lost ≥1 day, and illnesses with estimated time lost >7 days per sport (%). counts COVID-19 cases as estimated time absent >7 days.
This changing trend, likely due in large part to the extensive countermeasures taken to prevent and control the new crown epidemic, has effectively reduced the spread of new crowns and all respiratory infections. the 9% overall injury rate is similar to the Rio 2016 (8%), London 2012 (11%) and Beijing 2008 (10%) Olympic Games.
Seven new events have been added to the 2020 Tokyo Games, including karate and rock climbing. While the overall level of risk is comparable to previous events, the additional sports have caused a disproportionate number of injury cases. The highest incidence of injuries was in boxing (27 percent) and the new sports of scooter racing (27 percent), freestyle scooter (22 percent), skateboarding (21 percent) and karate (19 percent). The researchers noted that the reasons for the eventual high increase in injury rates among scooter and karate competitors are complex – from weather conditions, venue, track and equipment design to awareness of injury prevention training.
This underscores the importance of continuous longitudinal monitoring of injuries and illnesses, as these variables can change over time. Heat stroke also affected 78 athletes, which is not surprising considering that temperatures soared above 30 °C and relative humidity exceeded 70 percent, making temperatures more uncomfortable for the body.
Fortunately, the cases were mild and the team attributed them to mitigation measures. These include the rescheduling of some events and recommendations for training in similar conditions before competitions, which studies have shown can help athletes tolerate more extreme conditions. There were also provisions, such as electrolyte drinking water and shade during the event and ice baths afterward. The researchers welcomed the success of the new Olympic crown prevention and control measures, but recommended that future competitions be held in cooler conditions. This would reduce resource requirements (from event organizers and athletes) to implement countermeasures against sports-related heat stroke and maximize the chances of athletes safely achieving optimal performance. The final conclusion of the report is that 9% of athletes at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo will be injured during competition and 4% will become ill; comprehensive countermeasures will help mitigate COVID-19 and sports-related heat illness. Original paper: Soligard T, Palmer D, Steffen K, et al. New sports, COVID-19 and the heat: sports injuries and illnesses in the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics[J]. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 2023;57:46-54.
Copyright ©Sports Medicine and Health Science, SMHS, All Rights Reserved.