Shocking Injuries & Bizarre Events On The Field

The world of sports is dangerous – Fact! It may be the place we head to for an evening of entertainment, but some spectators have had more than a shock during some matches, when players have had their throats slit on the ice, or basketball players have broken their legs so badly that the videos have become an instant viral hit. However fit the athletes are, when they walk onto that field, rink, or floor, they are pushing their bodies to the extreme so accidents are bound to happen. Over the years football, hockey and basketball news sites have reported shocking accidents, injuries or bizarre incidents, so we thought we would share them with you.

Here are some of the funniest and most vomit inducing injuries from some of our most loved sports – it will definitely make you think twice about a career in professional sports.

Dave Dravecky

Dave Dravecky’s story is one of the saddest injury stories we will mention here. In the 1980’s, Dravecky was one of the best baseball pitchers for the San Francisco Giants that the club had seen. Not only was his career amazing, but he was also a cancer survivor with millions keeping track of his miraculous recovery.

He returned to his beloved game in August 1989, and it was in a game on August 10th that prematurely ended his career. Whilst pitching the ball, Dravecky twisted in an unfortunate manner, snapping his humerus bone and leaving him rolling around in agony. Tragically, the injury put a stop to his career and even worse, he had to have his arm amputated.

Clint Malarchuk

Any fan of ice hockey will know exactly where this is going! 1989 was a bad year for gruesome sporting injuries and Malarchuk’s is certainly stomach churning. Malarchuk was playing in goal for a match between his team, the Buffalo Sabres against the St Louis Blues. Two players rushed towards the goal, smashing into Malarchuk – Nothing unusual there, but one of the players managed to catch his neck with their skate. This was no nick; the cut was so deep that it tore his jugular vein.

As the match was screened live, Malarchuk looking calm and relaxed, stuffed his glove into his neck and calmly left the rink. He later said this was because he didn’t want his mom to see him die on national television. He required 300 stitches and physiotherapy, but made a full recovery. He is one badass hockey player to have remained so calm, when other players were caught fainting at the site of the injury!

Kevin Ware

Basketball is one of those games where it’s easy to believe that injuries occur – jumping to heights like that has it’s risks. In March of 2013, that’s exactly what happened to college basketball player Kevin Ware. Ware, who was playing for his team the Louisville Cardinals, made a crazy leap that was impressive in his own right. The issue was how he landed. When he reached the ground, his leg snapped in multiple places, leaving him with a compound fracture that made his fellow teammates and spectators weak at the knees. Although the injury looked extremely horrific and required a long stay in the hospital, Ware is now on the road to recovery and should be able to play again.

Joe Theismann

Finally, to a sport that’s arguably more physically demanding (and dangerous) than any other – Football. By 1985, Joe Theismann had won a Super Bowl, was awarded the MVP, and had set the most records for a quarterback within the Washington Redskins. But it was during a match against rivals New York Giants that Theismann became really famous. Sadly not for his football prowess, but for the most gruesome injury in sporting history.

During an attempted flea flicker play, the Giants defense made a mad dash to gain control, leaving Lawrence Taylor to take on Theismann, who sacked him. However, the tackle left Theismann screaming in agony, with his leg bone jutting out of place in a horrific manner. He had actually broken both the major bones in his leg, the Fibula and Tibia in between the knee and the ankle. Unfortunately cameras caught the horrific moment and if you have a strong enough stomach you can view it here.