The untimely death of Australian cricket star Phillip Hughes should be a wakeup call for our sporting fraternity on the importance of preventing sporting injuries.

In what has been called a ‘fluke death” the former test batsman was hit by a bouncer in a game at the Sydney Cricket Ground while playing for South Australia against New South Wales in the Sheffield Cup competition three days ago.

He succumbed yesterday to his internal injuries, caused when he misjudged a delivery and was hit on the head, just below the rim of his helmet.

The odds of a similar sporting accident happening here is quite remote but the importance of ensuring proper conditioning and training for our local athletes should not be understated.

One of the immediate concerns is the losses conceded by our local boxers in recent international bouts. It should raise a red flag with the Boxing Commission of Fiji (BCF) about the poor preparation for our local boxers. Poor preparation for boxers can only be detrimental to their health especially given the violent nature of the sport. Its common knowledge that local boxers are sometimes forced to fight in heavier weight divisions in local amateur programmes. This is gross irresponsibility on the part of the programme organisers and managers of the boxers, who only fight in these mismatches out of obligation. It is only a matter of time before someone collapses in the ring because of severe head injuries in a mismatched fight.

In rugby, with the advent of the professional game, there has been a renewed focus on conditioning and proper diet and exercise and recuperation that has lessened the reported incidents of rugby injuries. There was a time when the plight of local rugby players with life-threatening spinal injuries because they were caught in collapsed scrums was highlighted on a regular basis.

Kudos to the rugby union and league fraternity for addressing this and helping to reduce life-threatening injuries.

Social media is already abuzz with analyses of Hughes’ death and what might have been done to prevent it. Most commentators point out the rarity of serious injuries in Australian cricket history. Some even point out that cricket helmets, especially those worn by Hughes provide a false sense of security, especially against the world’s top fast bowlers.

However, such analyses should never lead to complacency, on the part of all stakeholders in the sports industry.

Indeed, an audit of sorts should be done by all sporting organisations in Fiji to assess their safety measures and player health in order to minimise life-threatening injuries.

It’s been said more times than we care to remember, but for safety’s sake, it should resonate with us at such a time as this. Prevention is always better than cure. Unfortunately, it had to take the tragic death of a rising cricket star for us to be reminded of thisJOSUA TUWERE

Feedback: josuat@fijisun.com.fj