The human body is a mystery. Phenomena occur all the time that have doctors scratching their heads. A friend of mine recently had a golf ball-sized tumor in his brain dissolve after plaguing him for seven years. He was elated; doctors at the Mayo Clinic are stumped.
You might think, though, that something as standard and simple as a broken leg would be pretty well understood. But on Sunday during a college basketball game, Louisville player Kevin Ware snapped his leg in two places. It didn’t occur when someone landed on him or by him jumping to save a ball going out of bounds and hitting a bench. He simply long-jumped toward an opposing player shooting a basket. As soon as he landed, snap.
Beware: this video shows a leg breaking:
(If HD is working slowly for you and/or CBS censors the above clip on YouTube for copyright, here’s a backup to watch:
According to the story on TheWeek.com, open fractures, where the bone is exposed to air, are exceedingly rare even in violent sports. In basketball, this may be the first occurrence of its kind. Ware snapped his lower leg bone (tibia) in two places. How did it happen?
Some doctors theorize that Ware had existing, though unnoticed, hairline fractures in his tibia. Another physician wondered about vitamin deficiency. Other doctors point out that even given the above two variables, a “perfect” landing would be necessary with enough forward momentum and a locked knee and ankle.
It’s funny how fickle our bodies can be. People have survived devastating car accidents virtually untouched. Collegiate athlete Keven Ware snapped his leg performing a routine jump.
On another note, and as exemplified by the video stills above, the reaction of the players is also intriguing. So affected they were by the sight of their teammate’s dangling leg, that they simply fell where they stood and sat in despair. After a couple seconds, they were told to get back on their feet. And a few seconds after that, they jogged over to Ware to offer their support. Meanwhile, as Ware had jumped toward his bench to make the play, his teammates there had front row seat to the traumatic snap. And rather than a response of instant assistance, they reacted in a somewhat opposite fashion: crowding back and away from him.
On top of the event being very uncommon, it was a moment to look at the psyche of those who witness a gruesome sight, a look at how disturbing it can be to see your peer go through something so horrific, and finally a chance to see teammates rally for their fallen brother. At the time of Ware’s injury, the score was 20-21. Louisville went on to win the game by 22.
-Brandon