HOUSTON – Team South Africa’s Micaela Bouter’s 2018 Commonwealth Games preparations hit a small speed bump over the weekend as the ace diver injured her foot in a training incident.
Based at Houston University, Bouter has qualified in three disciplines for the 2018 Gold Coast Games – the 3m synchronised as well as the one- and three-metre events.
But the 22-year-old biology student is as upbeat as ever after her hiccup.
“I just hit the diving board with my foot – not the best timing at all but I should be all okay by Commonwealth Games,” she told Team SA from the US.
Medical diagnosis at first showed nothing too serious “so we’re just waiting for the swelling to go down so I can strap it up and begin training again”.
But later in the day there was more clarity. “I just saw the doctor again and he said I have a small fracture in my second toe. So I should still be able to buddy-strap my toes and dive.”
She duly went out and practised. “It was more sore than I had hoped but I’m still keeping positive spirits up. I’ll keep going to training everyday but for now I’m just doing some belt work (which involves being strapped into a harness above the trampoline) and entry work in the water.
“So for now I’m keeping the jumping to a minimum.”
Team South Africa will hope that minimum effort now will convert into maximum reward at the Gold Coast Games – the last time that South Africa had diving representation at the Games was Jenna Dreyer.
That was also in Australia, back at the 2006 Games in Melbourne.