Safety
With regard to injuries sustained, a five-year study published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine found that injury rates were similar on natural grass and synthetic turf. There were, however, notable differences in the types of injuries. Athletes playing on synthetic turf sustained more skin injuries and muscle strains while those who played on natural grass were more susceptible to concussions and ligament tears.
In 2010, another peer-reviewed study was published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine, this time on NCAA Division 1-A football, concluding that in many cases games played FieldTurf-branded products led to fewer injuries than those played on natural grass.
Martin O'Neill said FIFA officials should "have their heads examined" for allowing FieldTurf after Thomas Sorensen suffered a non-contact hamstring injury during a game in Toronto. According to FIFA at the time, 14% of injuries on grass were non-contact related while the figure rose to 22% on the turf.
Read more about this topic: FieldTurf
Famous quotes containing the word safety:
“... what a family is without a steward, a ship without a pilot, a flock without a shepherd, a body without a head, the same, I think, is a kingdom without the health and safety of a good monarch.”
—Elizabeth I (1533–1603)
“Perhaps in a book review it is not out of place to note that the safety of the state depends on cultivating the imagination.”
—Stephen Vizinczey (b. 1933)
“The high sentiments always win in the end, the leaders who offer blood, toil, tears and sweat always get more out of their followers than those who offer safety and a good time. When it comes to the pinch, human beings are heroic.”
—George Orwell (1903–1950)