Surgery Sidelines Skipper
Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:28 pm
http://www.registerguard.com/news/2005/ ... .0329.html
Surgery will put Skipper on bench
By Curtis Anderson
The Register-Guard
Oregon sophomore pole vaulter Tommy Skipper will likely miss the first 4-to-6 weeks of the outdoor track and field season after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery this past week.
Skipper, a two-time NCAA champion and school record-holder in the pole vault with a clearance of 18 feet, 10 1/4 inches, underwent surgery on March 21 to repair a small tear in the medial meniscus in his left knee.
He reportedly suffered the injury in mid-February, but opted to vault in three additional indoor meets before having the operation.
"The knee was sore and it was bothering him, but it was OK enough to compete on until he was done with the indoor season," said Mark Vanderville, who oversees the UO pole vaulters as a volunteer assistant coach. "We wanted to get it fixed before the outdoor season."
Despite the injury, Skipper won the NCAA indoor title (18-4 1/2 ) and placed second at the U.S. indoor championships (18-2 1/2 ) this year.
He is currently in the early stages of the rehabilitation process and hopes to return to competition by late April or early May. That means Skipper would miss the first two home meets of the outdoor season - the Pepsi Team Invitational on April 9 and the Oregon Invitational on April 21.
Vanderville said the delay to the outdoor season would actually work in Skipper's favor because the 20-year-old Sandy native plans to compete well beyond the NCAA Championships in early June.
"Tommy's season will progress further than the NCAAs. It will go into the summer with the U.S. meet and possibly with a world championship team," Vanderville said. "Most people on that cycle won't jump a lot now anyway. They take time off after the indoor season and start competing in late April or May. He's on that cycle now. ... It's (about) more than peaking at the NCAAs, so the delay works out perfect."
Surgery will put Skipper on bench
By Curtis Anderson
The Register-Guard
Oregon sophomore pole vaulter Tommy Skipper will likely miss the first 4-to-6 weeks of the outdoor track and field season after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery this past week.
Skipper, a two-time NCAA champion and school record-holder in the pole vault with a clearance of 18 feet, 10 1/4 inches, underwent surgery on March 21 to repair a small tear in the medial meniscus in his left knee.
He reportedly suffered the injury in mid-February, but opted to vault in three additional indoor meets before having the operation.
"The knee was sore and it was bothering him, but it was OK enough to compete on until he was done with the indoor season," said Mark Vanderville, who oversees the UO pole vaulters as a volunteer assistant coach. "We wanted to get it fixed before the outdoor season."
Despite the injury, Skipper won the NCAA indoor title (18-4 1/2 ) and placed second at the U.S. indoor championships (18-2 1/2 ) this year.
He is currently in the early stages of the rehabilitation process and hopes to return to competition by late April or early May. That means Skipper would miss the first two home meets of the outdoor season - the Pepsi Team Invitational on April 9 and the Oregon Invitational on April 21.
Vanderville said the delay to the outdoor season would actually work in Skipper's favor because the 20-year-old Sandy native plans to compete well beyond the NCAA Championships in early June.
"Tommy's season will progress further than the NCAAs. It will go into the summer with the U.S. meet and possibly with a world championship team," Vanderville said. "Most people on that cycle won't jump a lot now anyway. They take time off after the indoor season and start competing in late April or May. He's on that cycle now. ... It's (about) more than peaking at the NCAAs, so the delay works out perfect."
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