Gold medalist Hamm breaks hand, may miss Olympic trials
HOUSTON -- Olympic gold medalist Paul Hamm has a broken bone in his right hand, an injury that will take at least four weeks' recovery and likely will keep him out of next month's Olympic trials.
The men's competition at the Beijing Games begins Aug. 9, 11 weeks from now. Hamm probably will have to petition for a spot on the U.S. team, but USA Gymnastics officials would be almost sure to grant it, provided he is healthy.
Hamm is the only American man to win the all-around title at the world championships (2003) or Olympics (2004), and he has been dominant in every meet he's entered this year.
Despite the fall on parallel bars that caused the injury Thursday night, Hamm finished preliminaries at the U.S. gymnastics championships with a score of 93.450, almost four points better than anyone else. Nationals continue Saturday night, and the Olympic trials are June 19-22 in Philadelphia.
"It's very disappointing," Miles Avery, Hamm's coach, said Friday. "You work so hard and lay a plan in motion, and this isn't in it, a setback like this. He was doing so amazingly well."
Indeed, Hamm was dazzling through his first five events at the U.S. championships Thursday night, taking a commanding lead. But as he flipped to do work on one rail on parallel bars, he missed catching the bar and jammed the fingers on his right hand.
Hamm fell, grimacing as he immediately grabbed his hand.
"I heard a small popping sound in the joint," Hamm said Thursday night.
After Hamm finished his routine, USA Gymnastics medical officials spent several minutes examining him. Two large ice bags were put on his hand, and Hamm said he thought he might have dislocated his right ring finger. But X-rays Friday morning revealed he had broken a bone, the fourth metacarpal in his right hand.
Avery said Hamm would return to Columbus, Ohio, and will see a hand specialist to determine how best to treat the injury.
"I would say somewhere in that four-week, six-week range is probably my best guess," Avery said of Hamm's recovery time. "But athletes are amazing, and he's an amazing athlete."
One option would be to put Hamm in a cast, though that likely would mean a longer recovery. Another option would be surgery to insert a pin in the broken bone. All-Star second baseman Chase Utley had a pin inserted in his hand after breaking the very same bone in July 2007, and was back in the Philadelphia Phillies lineup a month later.
Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith played a mere 12 days after having a plate and six screws inserted when he broke his fourth metacarpal in 1999.