Search icon

Sport

06th Aug 2016

French gymnast breaks leg in this mis-timed vault landing

WARNING: Graphic

Simon Lloyd

Needless to say, nobody wantw anything like this to happen at the Olympics.

There’s always something terribly sad about seeing a world class athlete pick up an injury such as this one.

French gymnast Samir Ait Said will have spent the best part of the last four years trying to make it to the Rio Olympics. Sadly for him, not even a day on from the Games’ opening ceremony, his Olympic adventure has ended with a sickening injury.

Said crumpled to the floor immediately after his vault landing. Instantly, it became obvious that the gymnast had broken his left leg, and remained on the floor for several minutes as medical staff attended to the injury.

Gymnastics - Artistic - Olympics: Day 1

Gymnastics - Artistic - Olympics: Day 1

Gymnastics - Artistic - Olympics: Day 1

Gymnastics - Artistic - Olympics: Day 1

The video of the incident follows, but be warned – it’s really not for the squeamish.

The 26-year-old had also competed in the World Artistic Gymnastic Championships in Glasgow last season before earning his place on his country’s Olympic team.

With Said being stretchered away, Germany’s Andreas Toba was completing a pommel horse routine after severely injuring his knee on floor exercise.

Toba didn’t get to finish his floor routine and had to be helped off the podium. He did, however, manage to land his dismount on pommel horse, but did it without putting any weight on the injured leg.