With incredible feats of athleticism comes the risk of serious, career-altering injuries, and no sport is immune to it.
Finnish ice hockey player Ronja Salvolainen is the latest athlete to suffer an injury in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, crashing into United States opponent Meghan Duggan and sliding head-first into the sideboards during the Ice Hockey Women Play-off Semifinals on Monday. Though the extent of Salvolainen’s injuries are unclear, it’s a brutal reminder of the toll athletes take while competing throughout the decades. Take a look at some memorable injuries from years past.
Ronja Savolainen, Finland, Ice Hockey
Ronja Savolainen #88 of Finland is attended to after colliding with Meghan Duggan #10 of the United States during the Ice Hockey Women Play-offs Semifinals (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
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Nancy Kerrigan, United States, Figure Skating
Nancy Kerrigan after the debilitating blow to her leg, delivered by a man hired by the ex-husband of rival skater, Tonya Harding. (Intersports Television)
Nancy Kerrigan was delivered a debilitating blow to her leg by a man hired by the ex-husband of her rival skater, Tonya Harding. She was not able to compete in the upcoming Olympics as a result.
Samir Ait Said, France, Gymnastics
Samir Ait Said of France breaks his leg while competing on the vault during the Artistic Gymnastics Men’s Team qualification on Day 1 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Rio Olympic Arena on August 6, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
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Samir Ait Said broke his leg after an awkward landing on Day 1 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Andranik Karapetyan, Armenia, Weightlifting
Armenia’s Andranik Karapetyan sustains an injury while competing during the Men’s 77kg weightlifting competition at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on August 10, 2016. (AFP/GOH Chai Hin/Getty)
Andranik Karapetyan dislocated his elbow while competing during the Men’s Weightlifting Competition in Rio 2016.
Elissa Downie, Great Britain, Gymnastics
Elissa Downie of Great Britain checks in with coach Colin Still after falling while competing on floor during Women’s qualification for Artistic Gymnastics on Day 2 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Rio Olympic Arena on August 7, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
Tom Pennington
Elissa Downie took a terrifying tumble while competing in the 2016 Rio Olympics, crunching her neck after mistiming a forward somersault and landing on her neck. She didn’t have any lasting injuries, though, and was able to continue competing after the fall.
Derek Redmond, Great Britain, Runner
Derek Redmond of Great Britain is helped towards the finish line by his father after suffering a hamstring injury in the Men’s 400m semi-final during the Barcelona O;ympic at the Olympic Stadium on August 3, 1992 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Sankei Archive via Getty Images)
This famous photograph shows Derek Redmond of Great Britain as his father helps run him to the finish line of the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Redmond snapped his hamstring while competing in the Men’s 400m semi-final.
Xiang Liu, China, Hurdles
Liu Xiang of China sits on the track after pulling his achilles tendon in the Men’s 110m Hurdles Round 1 Heats on Day 11 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 7, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Liu Xiang is an Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion whose career was cut short after an achilles injury on his right foot during the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Nodar Kumaritashvili, Georgia, Luge
Nodar Kumaritashvili of Georgia comes around the 15th turn during the second Men’s Single Luge training run at the Whistler Sliding Centre ahead of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics on February 10, 2010 in Whistler, Canada. Kumaritashvili was killed on Feburary 12, 2010 after crashing while making a practice run. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Nodar Kumaritashvili was tragically killed after crashing during a practice run at the Whistler Sliding Centre in Canada ahead of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
Kerri Strug, United States Gymnastics
Kerri Strug of the United States is carried by coach Bela Karolyi during the team competition of the Women’s Gymnastics event of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games held on July 23, 1996 in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. Strug was part of the gold medal winning USA Women’s team, nicknamed the Magnificent Seven. (Photo by David Madison/Getty Images)
A member of the “Magnificent Seven,” Kerri Strug famously secured a gold medal win for the U.S. women’s gymnastic’s team, despite the severe sprain and two torn ligaments she was suffering in her ankle from an earlier botched landing.
Ervin Zador, Hungary, Water Polo
Hungarian Ervin Zador with blood pouring from a cut eye is led to a casualty room for attention for the injury which he received from a Russian player in the closing stages of the Hungary VS Russia water polo match in 1956. The game ended in chaos with hundreds of new Australians in the crowd screaming for the blood of the Russians. (Getty)
Hungarian Ervin Zador is pictured bleeding from the face after sparring with a Russian player during a water polo match in the 1956 Melbourne, Australia Olympics.
John Tavares, Canada, Ice Hockey
Canadas Players with Gold medal, featuring an injured John Tavares, who tore his meniscus during a game v. Latvia at the XXII Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014 (Photo by Sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)
John Tavares suffered a knee injury during the quarterfinals in the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi. His team went on to cinch the gold.
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