Does anyone know a story about someone getting injured because their skates were in poor condition?

Question

I have to do a project and am giving a speech on figure skating. I need stories of people who got injured or something bad happened to them because they did not take proper care of their skates or they were just in bad condition.

Please help!!!

Answer 1

Definitely!  Unfortunately this is exactly what happend to me this season.  I could not afford new skates and I have been trying to make it for two more weeks, omitting doubles and axle for safty reasons.  The skates I have are so messed up that they have messed up my feet from not being tight enough.  I sprained my ankle on a simple split  jump when I landed because the skates are so thin from wearing them.

I started having back pain yesterday after a practice where all I did was foot work, no jumps or spins!  When the boots dont fit correctly they can really mess you up!  Just like shoes.  People who wear shoes that dont fit, example running shoes, thier backs can become dammaged.  

They can also hurt other parts of the body...if there is pressure in the back area of the foot,(ususally from too tight fitting of a boot) the archilles tendon can become inflammed and cause tendinitous (however you spell it) or in very bad and prolonged cases, snap.  Inflamed tendons need time to heal and can take weeks to months, and a snap of a tendon needs surgury...and we all know that is no fun!  

In women it is common to have knee cartilage problems, so even jumping and spinning in normal fitted skates can cause knee (and hip) issues, so making sure skates fit exactly right is not just a should but a DO!

So take my advice people who read this...dont try to make it until the end of the season...if you need new skates....GET new skates!  : )  

Hope this helps.  Dont feel sorry for me...I get new skates in a month and I am doing off ice training till then...just thought you would like a personal experience.  Good luck with your report.  : )

Answer 2

I know for a fact that such stories exist the "U.S. Figure Skating" ( the USA part of  governing body of the Olympic skaters and the mecca of all figure skating info for the USA and is the governing holder of all competitive USA Olympic skaters to beginners). www.usfsa.org has a magazine called Skating Magazine where they have stories and questions and answers on boot and blade care and fitting and everything in between. Mr. Edge is the articles author and name of the articles question and answer area of the magazine. You should be able to find past releases of the magazine through the site by search type Mr. Edge.I know people most often get injured by buying ill properfitting skates that damage their feet where they cant walk and need surgery. Hope that helps!

Answer 3

I'll be watching this one.  This sounds interesting.

Answer 4

when i was younger i didn't ever dry the wood part of my boot and while skating... my blade became detached from my boot and i face planted..

Answer 5

Two famous skaters:

Michelle Kwan: Ill fitting boots led to a stress fracture that side-lined her for two months before the 1998 Olympics. Some people believe that this was partially responsible for her losing the Olympic Gold Medal to Tara Lipinski.

Katarina Witt threw a s***w (blades are often only attached top the boot with one or two screws) and her balde fell off her skate causing her to land on her booted foot--a NASTY fall. In later years, she attributed problems with one particular jump (iirc, her triple toe) to fears associated with that fall.