Injured Dina could miss London 2017
SPRINT star Dina Asher-Smith is a doubt for this year’s World Championships in London after scans confirmed that a broken foot may require surgery and a long period of rehabilitation. Asher-Smith, 21, who holds the British record for 100m and 200m, faces a race to be fit for the August showpiece at the London Stadium. Her coach, John Blackie, said: ‘It’s going to require a bit of treatment, let’s put it that way. ‘It’s difficult to say whether she’ll be OK for London because it will depend on how well the rehab goes. ‘Things shouldn’t be rushed just for the sake of an event — the athlete comes first.’
LONDON 2017 organisers fear Dina Asher-Smith could miss the showpiece event after scans confirmed her broken foot might require surgery and a long rehabilitation.
Britain’s fastest woman faces a race against time to be fit for the World Championships in August as some suggest she should forget about the event altogether with her future career in mind.
Sportsmail understands the 21-year- old has broken the navicular bone, the same injury which kept Jessica Ennis-Hill out of the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Asher- Smith and her team are likely to have a clearer picture by the end of this week about the length of recovery needed.
Her coach John Blackie says Asher- Smith’s recovery will not be hurried just for the sake of her competing in August.
‘It’s going to require a bit of treatment, let’s put it that way,’ Blackie said. ‘ Things come clearer once we’ve got through this week. It’s difficult to say whether she’ll be Ok for London because it depends how well the rehab goes.
‘Some people rehab quickly and others a lot slower. But we won’t do it by luck. It’s a longterm picture, things shouldn’t be rushed just for the sake of an event, the athlete comes first. That’s always the case.’
Asher-Smith, British record holder over 100m and 200m, is also front and centre of the advertising campaign for the Anniversary Games in July, the annual event which this year will be a warm-up for the World Championships.
Only this week she was painted in the red, white and blue of the union flag as part of a push to sell tickets, as many are choosing to buy seats for the World Championships four weeks later.
If she were to miss out it would come as a huge blow to organisers because she is one of the biggest names in British Athletics — and a hometown girl from Bromley, south London.
The sprinter, who is in the third year of a history degree at University College London, is hopeful of being fit in time to compete at the same stadium where she was a kit-carrier at London 2012.
‘The injury is so annoying,’ she said. ‘I was doing jumps in the gym and landed badly. When I tried to stand, I couldn’t put weight on it. But I have enough time to make a full recovery and get some training in before the outdoor season. If it had to happen, better now than in May. I usually heal quickly.’ But one insider warned that the navicular, a boatshaped bone in the ankle, can prove problematic. ‘ It can require a pin putting in the foot,’ said the source, ‘but that can shorten a career or even end a career, and the alternative is a lengthier period of rehabilitation.’
LIVERPOOL have offered to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games after hosts Durban said they might not be able to afford it.