Rugby news: retired players stand higher risk of suffering from injuries than other athletes (to be continued)

Rugby is now becoming a common sport for many players despite the fact that it stands a risk of injury at all levels for any participants. However, when it comes to professional rugby, players often suffer from higher risk of being badly injured than anyone else. According to the latest research, it is found out that in comparison to other athletes from non-contact sports, retired and amateur rugby players were between two and ten times more likely to suffer from injuries – concussion and knee-ligament injuries are the ones being mostly recognized.

Being played by more than 8.5 million people all around the world, rugby is quickly gaining its popularity among many nations. There are two types of rugby: rugby union and rugby league. Play of both types often lasts two halves of 40 minutes for each one, the difference only stands in the number of players (15 for union and 13 for league) and rules of each type.

There are a lot of injuries audits and overall health check-ups being conducted for the rugby players by governing bodies both at the semi-professional and professional levels to make sure everything is within the physical limit of them, these studies are limited to one or two seasons. Therefore, longer-term injuries are hard to be cured for players, especially when they are off from the rugby field.

This recent research was conducted by part of the Global Rugby Codes Health Research Programme which is organized by researchers at Auckland University of Technology and Durham University. The total reported injuries from rugby players throughout their career have been collected, even though there have been injuries lasting until their retirement took place. The study collected 189 UK elites and amateurs coming from different rugby leagues and teams, as well as 65 retired athletes from non-contact sports – mainly cricket.