Off The Record
Olympic Gymnast Flavia Saraiva Shocked Viewers After Competing With A Bandaged Face
Following a severe injury, Brazilian competitor Flavia Saraiva had to recuperate quickly for the gymnastics final.
On July 30, Saraiva, 24, was hardly getting warmed up for her 2024 Olympic all-around team finals appearance in Paris when she unexpectedly lost her grip.
The gymnast was rehearsing her routine on the uneven bars when she abruptly fell off while she was spinning around the eight-foot-high bar.
Saraiva lost her balance and struck her own eye with her knee.
After a little period of time spent on the mat as her coach checked on her, she rolled over to make room for her colleagues to warm up.
Though her head was in her hands, Saraiva didn’t have much time to compose herself before facing the incident front-on.
Speaking about her incident, per the Metro, she explained: “I could not see, it bled, but the team’s doctor told me everything was all right.”
“I believe my knee hit my eye when I tripped. It’s not the first time it happened to me. We are warriors.”
The gymnast had severe bruises surrounding one of her eyes and a bandage over one eyebrow when she competed, but she didn’t let the setback stop her.
She proceeded as intended, even earning a medal for finishing third behind Italy and the United States, which took first place with a total of 171.296 points scored by Simone Biles.
Saraiva later told Globo that she became disorientated in the accident, saying: “When I realized I was on the floor, lying down with my knee in my face,. I just rolled over so Rebecca could warm up.”
“I said, ‘guys, where am I?’. Then Chico said, ‘it’s bleeding, it’s bleeding’. I put my hand on my face and my eye was bleeding, I didn’t understand anything. Then he asked if I was warm. Then I said, ‘now I’m awake’.”
Following the incident, supporters praised Saraiva for her tenacity, and viewers referred to her as a “star” and a “hero” on social media.
Rich Lerner, a commentator for NBC, added: “‘She left to get medical attention, but she is back. She’s tough.”
Saraiva has participated in two previous Olympic games, in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2020, but her triumph in Paris is her first medal.
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