Most Dangerous Sport? This Will Surprise You

I was in the process of looking for some statistics to make an argument that sportwriter Hank Koebler is wrong when he says NFL players aren't overpaid. I ran into something that doesn't further my thoughts on that topic, but is pretty interesting, in any case.

Quick now: What sport has the most injuries in the U.S.? Football? Boxing? Xtreme whatever? Skiing? Skydiving? Fighting?

Nope.

Here's a list I found from a 2006 study by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission that includes the number and types of injuries:

• 529,837 Basketball - Cut hands, sprained ankles, broken legs, eye and forehead injuries.
• 490,434  Bicycling - Feet caught in spokes, head injuries from falls, slipping while carrying bicycles, collisions with cars.
• 460,210  Football - Fractured wrists, chipped teeth, neck strains, head lacerations, dislocated hips and jammed fingers.
• 275,123  ATVs, Mopeds, Minibikes - Riders of ATVs were frequently injured when they were thrown from vehicles. There were also fractured wrists, dislocated hands, shoulder sprains, head cuts and lumbar strains.
• 274,867  Baseball, Softball - Head injuries from bats and balls. Ankle injuries from running bases or sliding into them.
• 269,249  Exercise, Exercise Equipment - Twisted ankles and cut chins from tripping on treadmills. Head injuries from falling backward from exercise balls, ankle sprains from jumping rope.
• 186,544  Soccer - Twisted ankles or knees after falls, fractured arms during games.
• 164,607  Swimming - Head injuries from hitting the bottom of pools, and leg injuries from accidentally falling into pools.
• 96,119  Skiing, Snowboarding - Head injuries from falling, cut legs and faces, sprained knees or shoulders.
• 85,580  Lacrosse, Rugby and other Ball Games - Head and facial cuts from getting hit by balls and sticks, injured ankles from falls.

Koebler's premise on the value of pro football players is interesting, too, and you can read it here.  I lost interest when I found the bigger picture.


(Photo: www.planostar.com)