The Australian hockey player Matt Dawson decided to amputate part of a finger on his hand in order to be able to participate in the 2024 Paris Olympicsthe athlete himself explained this Friday.
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Dawson, 30, who was part of the team that won silver in Tokyo in 2021, He recently broke the ring finger on his right hand, which put his participation in Paris-2024 at risk.
The difficult decision Matt Dawson had to make for the Olympics
Doctors advised him to put his finger in a cast and recover slowly or… cut off the top part! He chose the second option and had the operation this week.
“I made this decision with the surgeon’s approval, not only to have the opportunity to play in Paris, but for my future life”he told Australian broadcaster Channel Seven as he boarded the plane taking the delegation to France.
“The best option was to remove the top part of my finger. It’s a small change and an exciting challenge.“, he assured.
Australian coach Colin Batch praised the player’s demonstration of commitment: “It’s not something a coach can decide for a player,” he said.
“All the credit goes to Matt. He’s obviously put in so much effort to play in Paris… I’m not sure I would have done the same,” he added.
Australia, which lost the Tokyo final on penalties to Belgium, will be the first rival in the Olympic tournament for Argentina, champions in Rio 2014, on July 27.
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Source: https://www.noticiascaracol.com/mundo/deportista-se-quita-parte-de-un-dedo-para-competir-en-los-juegos-olimpicos-por-que-cb20
