"If You Have a Cast, You Can't Go to the Olympics"…The Difficult Choice of a Hockey Player

Matthew Dawson Suffers Fracture in Right Fourth Finger
Decision Made for Amputation Due to Difficulty Playing with Cast

Ahead of the Paris Olympics, an Australian men's hockey national team player who suffered a finger fracture made the difficult decision to amputate part of his finger instead of wearing a cast. This was because wearing a cast might have prevented him from participating in the Olympics.

On the 19th (local time), Australian media West Australian and the US New York Post reported on the story of Australian men's hockey national team player Matthew Dawson (30). Recently, about two weeks before the Olympics opening, he fractured the fourth finger on his right hand and was faced with the need to wear a cast. However, upon hearing that wearing a cast could prevent him from competing in the Olympics, Dawson chose to amputate part of his finger instead.

Australian hockey national team member Matthew Dawson (30) decided to amputate his finger instead of using a cast to participate in the Olympics.
[Image source: Dawson's social networking service (SNS), Yonhap News Agency]

Defender Dawson also participated in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, helping Australia win the silver medal. In an interview with Australian media, he said, "After consulting with doctors and considering not only participating in the Olympics but also life after the Olympics, I concluded that amputation was the better option." He added, "The best option was to amputate the upper part of the finger, which I think is a tremendous challenge." He continued, "There are many people who face bigger problems than losing part of a finger," and added, "I'm fortunate that at least some of my finger remains."

This is not Dawson's first injury. Six years ago, he faced the risk of blindness after being accidentally hit in the eye by a hockey stick. Colin Batch, coach of the Australian men's hockey team, said, "Dawson's decision is unbelievably dedicated," and added, "He could have chosen to wear a cast, but he amputated part of the fingertip and has now returned to training."

The Australian men's hockey team has won a total of 10 Olympic medals, making it the national team with the most Olympic medals in the sport. They have also held the number one spot in the International Hockey Federation (FIH) rankings for a long time and, as of June 2024, are ranked fourth behind the Netherlands, Great Britain, and Belgium.

The 33rd Summer Olympics will be held in Paris, France, from the 24th of this month until the 12th of next month. A total of 10,500 athletes from 206 countries will participate, competing in 32 events.