The Art of an Injury

Making a comeback with Breanna Allison

Lauren Agnew 

Most athletes will tell you that they are willing to sacrifice anything for their sport; they put their bodies and minds on the line every day either for glory, sheer love of sport, or both. But what about when disaster strikes? What about when the sport you love causes you to sit on the sidelines? For X-Women Rugby Fullback Breanna Allison, this is exactly what happened. 

Allison, whose friends and teammates call her “Bre”, has been a starter for StFX since her first year in 2013. Now in her third year, Bre has been sidelined with an injury expected to keep her off the field for at least a year. In a game against the UPEI Panthers early in the 2015 season, Bre was playing her usual position of fullback at number 15 on the field. It was a perfect day for rugby, with a few clouds and no wind, and the X-Women were set to win their first game of the season. Unfortunately, a few minutes into the second half Bre was forced to make a try-saving tackle. While it was spectacular to watch from the sidelines (Bre absolutely flattened the opposing player), on the field it was a different story: “I knew something was wrong right away, “says Allison, “But to be honest I didn’t think it was too serious. It just looked swollen right away, so I assumed that when the swelling went down I would be back on the field”. 

The injury would prove to be a fully torn right ACL, an injury that is becoming increasingly common in female athletes. Bre says she was surprised when she got the results of her MRI back, saying “I didn’t hear the snap or the pop or anything they say happens when you tear your ACL. I really didn’t think it was serious”. After a three month wait to see a surgeon, the tear was finally repaired. Then came rehab. For another three months Allison was limited to using crutches to get around the icy StFX campus, an unfortunate impediment given the timing of the injury. 

Allison says she is excited to get back on the field, but also “incredibly nervous.” She explains “I feel like I’m starting at ground zero. Now that I can slowly start training again I am so far behind my other teammates. I only just got cleared to run again.” Bre adds however that this has become her main source of motivation: “I want to get back on that field and back in a jersey” and she says she will to anything it takes to get there. 

The X-Women broke a 17-year championship winning streak this year, losing the AUS title at home to Acadia. Allison says that she is “anxious to get back and help [her] teammates take back the title.” But the effects of the injury are more than physical, there is a mental side as well. Bre worries that her injury will make her hesitate more on the field: “Once I get past the first tackle it will be fine. But that first one will be tough. I need to know my body can handle it again. As soon as that first tackle is over I know I will be more than ready, it’s just more motivation to get back.” 

Recovery can be frustrating, but Bre is thankful that she has her teammates for motivation and support, and adds that she is doing everything in her power to get back to training camp in August, and on the field for her fourth, and maybe even final year of rugby as an X-Woman. At the end of the day, having a positive attitude about the process and the prospect of returning to play is what keeps Bre working hard. “I still don’t know if I’m coming back for a fifth year,” she says, “but I do know that I’m not done yet. We have another championship to win.”

What we’ll tell our grandkids

Canada was once the international community’s poster child for ice hockey (although that was tossed out the window during the World Juniors) however this years diversified successes helped cultivate an evolved athletic culture we now identify with. 2015 was an explosive year for Canadian sports however some moments mark it as particularly triumphant for our over friendly population. 

Connor McDavid was drafted first over all in the 2015 NHL draft to the Edmonton Oilers. The forward is a stunning presence on the the ice only rivalling the entrance into the pros to that of Crosby’s. The next most exciting day for Edmonton will probably be McDavid’s return to line post broken collar bone recovery. 

Canadian basketball’s great one retired: Steve Nash. There is no denying his unbelievable talent, with two MVP trophies to back up his 19 year career, however his greatest impact might be that which has served as a role model and mentor for Basketball Canada. Although we shed a tear as we saidgoodbye to Nash, we should be comforted knowing his legacy will live on in the form of Toronto native Andrew Wiggins. The Timberland forward was drafted first overall in 2014 (which has only been done by one other Canadian), has stats rivalling that of Kevin Durant and Lebron James and won NBA rookie of the year in 2015, the only Canadian to acquire such title. 

Finally, there is not a moment inside an arena that ignites a Canadian’s heart more than the Jose Bautista bat flip. Toronto does not possess a positive reputation in any societal branch among Canadians, however by late summer of 2015 the Blue Jays were our baby and like most moms on Facebook we were flooding our friends on social media with images to point out just how special our child was. It was a romantic tale from Kawasaki’s hilarious interviews, to Josh Donaldson winning the American League’s most valuable player award and late comebacks against the Texas Rangers. The only part missing was a spot in the World Series, but nonetheless the Jays run sent a surge of pride and optimism through the country, stamped with the hashtag “come together.” 

A new year is upon us and so is the chance to dominate an even wider range of sports. In 2016, we can look forward to a comeback from Genie Bouchard, further success from golfer Brooke Henderson on the LPGA and medals at the Rio Olympics from track stars like 800m Melissa Bishop and sprinter Andre De Grasse.

It's Not Over

The prevailing issue of racism in professional and collegiate sports

A dominant ideology that strings together athletes, coaches and fans is the notion of sport,”being pure and good,” an arena separate from corruption. Unfortunately the FIFA administration, ruthlessness of fantasy football (see John Oliver’s rant) and continued socioeconomic inequity on the field have destroyed this desired sociological reputation. Although we yearn for sport to be the branch of culture free from prejudice, it appears that issues particularly those driven by racism are reflecting back onto the spheres of our athletes in a forthright manner. 

Sports history is defined by the moments where athletes such as Jackie Robinson, Jesse Owens and Thommie Smith overcame obstacles grounded in the colour of their skin and ignorant mindsets. Although these athletes’ successes dramatically contributed to a transformation in the perception of differing ethnicities, the use of racial slurs to eliminate an individual’s power during a competition persists. In North America we see this most clearly at the collegiate and professional level. 

 Last year, Donald Sterling former owner of the NBA’s L.A. Clippers was recorded saying to his significant other, “It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with black people”, and, “You can sleep with [black people]. You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want”, but “the little I ask you is ... not to bring them to my games.” These astonishing statements were followed by an (obvious) protest by his players, fan uproar and lifetime ban from the NBA issued by commissioner Adam Silverstein alongside a $2.5 million fine. 

Racism in sports is hardly left behind the scenes. In fact its often displayed in the most public manner: social media. Following a game winning goal by PK Subban against the Boston Bruins in 2014 a flood of discriminatory tweets flood the internet on behalf of Bruin fans to the point that the n-word was trending. 

CIS is renowned for producing individuals driven equally by character, athletic and academic success but even this group of reputable leaders are not segregated from incidences of racism as experienced by X-men hockey player Trey Lewis.  When Trey is not in Antigonish he resides in Elsipogtog First Nation in New Brunswick (his mother is Mi’kmaq). Playing major junior and in the AUS Lewis has encountered slurs aimed at his native roots, experienced mostrecently in a game against the University of Moncton. When asked how the scenario with the opposing player evolved Lewis states, “After a whistle in the game against Moncton I was talking to one of the Moncton players when another one of their players skated by calling me a *bleep*-ing Indian. It wasn’t the smartest decision because the linesman again was right beside us and heard the comment, (Trey politely substituted the word fucking for a kinder option).” He continued by describing his response to the remarks, “I turned to see if the linesman or ref had heard it, and then I’ll admit I overreacted and was quite mad at the player, but he was kicked out of the game, so nothing more came of it. I wouldn’t hold a grudge or anything, usually if anything like this happens I understand that it is a heat of the moment decision, and more often than not the player is not truly racist.”  Although this athlete displays an uncanny level of sympathy that can only be associated with incredible maturity he doesn’t deny that ignorance flows from the ice to everyday life regarding his heritage, “I have experienced more or less uneducated comments, for example someone upset that Natives get a treaty day holiday, or someone thinks it’s unfair that Natives have reduced taxes. I think this simply comes out of lack of education, throughout grade school and such we’re not taught nearly enough about Aboriginal histories and issues. This can lead to “accidental” racism in my opinion.” 

There is no denying racism is prevailing throughout Western society via police brutality, continued cultural appropriation and absurd Islamaphobia propaganda on Facebook. However our idea that the world of sports is isolated from this cruel, disempowering language is wrong and must be acknowledged if we desire to one day completely abolish racism.