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The average Olympian is well aware of the pain and sacrifice that comes with earning the right to represent your country, and you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone heading to Paris this year more aware of that reality than Australian field hockey player Matt Dawson.
Australia is one of 12 nations sending a delegation to the 2024 Olympic Games to compete in men's field hockey, which kicks off at Yves du Manoir Stadium on July 27, with the team bidding for an 11th medal after winning silver in Tokyo 2021.
Defender Matt Dawson is a member of that team (known as the Kookaburras) and was on the podium for the first time after just missing out on a medal in his Olympic debut in Rio in 2016.
On Wednesday, he hopped on a plane to Paris for his third show, a trip that went smoothly, but the same can never be said for his previous trips.
according to 7News, Dawson recently suffered a setback when he broke the ring finger on his right hand, putting his Olympic participation in jeopardy.
He had the option of a plaster cast, which would have prevented him from playing field hockey in Paris, but the doctor he consulted told him there was a more extreme option that would have avoided a cast: amputation.
After consulting with his wife, the 30-year-old decided to go ahead and have the tip of his finger amputated. He said he “didn't have much time to make a decision”, but added that “it seemed the wise choice, not only for me to play in Paris but for the rest of my life and for the best health for myself”.
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