KUALA LUMPUR: Using a crutch to help her in her recovery has backfired on national diver Cheong Jun Hoong.
Instead of providing support for her knee, the crutch caused a wrist injury.
As a result, Jun Hoong is likely to miss the rest of the FINA Diving World Series this season.
Last year, the 28-year-old went under the surgeon's knife for a knee injury after withdrawing from the Indonesia Asian Games in August and it was healing well.
Unfortunately, her use of crutches during the recovery process saw her injuring her wrist.
Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (ASUM) secretary Mae Chen said the national body are taking a cautious approach with Jun Hoong.
“We want to be very careful and make sure she is back to full fitness before she starts competing again,” said Mae.
“She has a problem with her right wrist because of the pressure she placed on it when she used crutches.
“I think it is best that the National Sports Institute (NSI) decide when she is ready to come back. We do not expect her to come back in time for the World Series.”
Only three more rounds remain in the World Series, which is only for the top ranked divers in the world, this season. The third round will be held in Canada on April 26-28 while the penultimate leg will be in Kazan on May 10-12. London will host the final round on May 17-19.
Japan and China hosted the first two rounds earlier this month.
Mae added that even the Gwangju World Championships in July remains a doubt for Jun Hoong.
“We can only hope that she will be able to compete in the World meet.
“If she can come back to pool training over the next few weeks, we might send her to one of the Grand Prix events in Europe before the World meet.
“We need to gauge her level of performance as she has not competed for almost a year.”
Jun Hoong, with Pandelela Rinong, delivered a historic gold medal in the 10m platform synchronised event at the Montreal leg of the World Series last year.
The duo had also won silver (Beijing) and two bronzes (Fuji, Kazan) in the series last season.