Eetu Nousiainen still had hopes when he returned from Slovenia to Finland. However, at the reception of an experienced sports surgeon, the gloom of the situation dawned very quickly. There is a long rehabilitation ahead.
Hill jumper Eetu Nousiainen26, fell badly on the poor descent slope of the Planica airstrip on March 21, and his left knee, which was damaged in the fall, was initially examined at a local hospital in Slovenia.
Even at this stage, Nousiainen, who was contacted by Urheilu, was hoping that he would have survived without surgery and the injuries that would require a long rehabilitation. The competition season ended with the World Cup in Planica anyway.
After returning home to Kuopio, Nousiainen got an appointment with a qualified sports surgeon From Urho Väätäinenwho photographed and examined the knee and bluntly extinguished the spark of hope of Nousiainen, who had jumped one Olympic and three World Championships.
“I had to collect a little”
– The anterior tourniquet is completely torn and the coil is completely cracked, so yes, a full operation will have to be done on it, unfortunately. I admit that I had to pull myself together a bit when Urho put the facts in front of my nose.
Nousiainen’s knee will probably be operated on either this week or next week at Mehiläinen in Kuopio, and the operating doctor will be Urho Väätäinen, who is very familiar with various orthopedic sports injuries.
While the extent of the injuries became clear to Nousiainen, something else became clear.
– The jumping break will be six to nine months, Nousiainen said, disappointed with his World Cup season that ended badly even before its dramatic end.
– In fact, I had to be operated on already today (Tuesday), but there was a bit to sort out with insurance matters.
Own accident insurance
Nousiainen calculates that he has paid an average of one thousand euros a year for his own accident insurance for about ten years.
– It’s been a long time since I got anything back, but now at least everything comes from a lump sum, he laughed.
Although Nousiainen swore that he has not removed next winter’s World Championships in Trondheim from his goal list, he also emphasized that you can’t be greedy when it comes to rehabilitation.
– At this point, I start from the fact that I will only jump from the snow, but I will by no means throw next season in the scrap heap and the goal is to jump at the World Championships. All in all, I’m sure that I’ll come back stronger from this and I’ll get very professional help for my rehabilitation.
Nousiai is particularly saddened by the fact that the accident could have been completely avoided if the organizers of Planica had put the descent slope of the airstrip in a safe condition. Because of the warm spring, the challenge was very tough.
– It’s less common that the ski leaves from under the ski after only 40 meters, so that this kind of thing happens.