2016 Olympic GamesAug 17, 2016 by Taylor Dutch
Abbey D'Agostino Tears ACL, Won't Race 5,000m Final
Abbey D'Agostino Tears ACL, Won't Race 5,000m Final
After her impactful display of sportsmanship following a collision in the 5,000m semifinal, Abbey D'Agostino will be unable to compete in the Olympic final
After her impactful display of sportsmanship following a collision in the 5,000m semifinal, Abbey D'Agostino will be unable to compete in the Olympic final due to a season-ending knee injury.
An MRI revealed that D'Agostino has a complete tear in her right ACL, a meniscus tear, and a strained MCL, USATF announced on Wednesday. She will not compete in Friday's 5,000m final.
D'Agostino was positioned in the middle of the crowded chase pack when New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin got tripped up. Hamblin's trip caused D'Agostino to fall on top of her. D'Agostino immediately helped Hamblin get up off the ground, but quickly fell to the ground, clearly struck with a sudden pain. Hamblin remained with D'Agostino and helped her up in return.
Despite the shock and pain of the collision on the Olympic stage, both athletes still managed to finish the race.
"There was about 2K to go, I was still feeling controlled, and was mentally prepared to focus and maintain contact with the lead group for the final grind," D'Agostino said in a statement.
"Then in a split second, there was a woman on the ground in front of me, I tripped on her, someone behind me tripped on me, and I was on the ground. Although my actions were instinctual at that moment, the only way I can and have rationalized it is that God prepared my heart to respond that way. This whole time here he's made clear to me that my experience in Rio was going to be about more than my race performance -- and as soon as Nikki got up I knew that was it."
An MRI revealed that D'Agostino has a complete tear in her right ACL, a meniscus tear, and a strained MCL, USATF announced on Wednesday. She will not compete in Friday's 5,000m final.
D'Agostino was positioned in the middle of the crowded chase pack when New Zealand's Nikki Hamblin got tripped up. Hamblin's trip caused D'Agostino to fall on top of her. D'Agostino immediately helped Hamblin get up off the ground, but quickly fell to the ground, clearly struck with a sudden pain. Hamblin remained with D'Agostino and helped her up in return.
Despite the shock and pain of the collision on the Olympic stage, both athletes still managed to finish the race.
After colliding, @abbey_dags (#USA) & @NikkiHamblin (#NZL) showed true #Olympic spirit. https://t.co/LJf9pw7jAv https://t.co/HTfixzPeks
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) August 17, 2016
"There was about 2K to go, I was still feeling controlled, and was mentally prepared to focus and maintain contact with the lead group for the final grind," D'Agostino said in a statement.
"Then in a split second, there was a woman on the ground in front of me, I tripped on her, someone behind me tripped on me, and I was on the ground. Although my actions were instinctual at that moment, the only way I can and have rationalized it is that God prepared my heart to respond that way. This whole time here he's made clear to me that my experience in Rio was going to be about more than my race performance -- and as soon as Nikki got up I knew that was it."