Sports injuries: ‘I never saw it coming’

Imagine dedicating your whole life to a career in sport only to have your ability to play taken away in a split second collision with another player.

This is a danger faced in all contact sports. While most injuries are mitigated with safety equipment the exception seems to surround eyes and vision.

With the possible exception of squash eyewear is virtually absent in many sports despite eye injury being a distinct possibility. Rafik Tahraoui’s dreams of sporting stardom may have ended on October 3 last year following an incident which left him virtually blind in one eye.

Tahraoui plays handball at international level. ‘There’s a lot of grappling in handball. You have to make physical contact with them to stop them, it’s a bit like rugby in that way,’ says Tahraoui who explains how his injury came about. ‘I received a pass in front of goal then turned around to shoot and some guy came from behind and his arm came right around and caught me in the face.’