The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

LONDON, England — Leevan ‘Superman’ Sands said it should only be a matter of time before he’s back in the pit jumping again.

On Saturday, one day after having a successful surgery to repair his patellae tendinitis, or what is commonly called ‘Jumper’s Knee,” Sands was going through a light therapy session and was looking quite fine as he and Amer Khan, the consultant orthopaedic surgeon, talked candidly to The Tribune about his recovery process at the Homerton University Hospital in Homerton Row, London.

The injury that Sands suffered on Thursday night as he was competing in the final of the men’s triple jump at the Olympic Stadium was more significant than an ACL, but Khan said he was impressed with the way the national record holder has been able to recuperate.

“He has a very good solid knee and now his main issue is going to be his rehabilitation, which is going to be protracted,” Khan said. “He’s aware of the time frame that it will take for him to fully recover and I hope he will be back to competitive competition very soon. But he will have to work hard on it, but I know he has the right spirit and the right attitude to succeed because I have no doubt that he’s going to get that Olympic gold that he missed out on here.”

Khan said Sands’ tendinitis were in pieces, as the medical team had expected, but having seen quite a number of them, he said it wasn’t unusual in his case. However, he said they managed to reconstruct the knee and repaired it very well to the point that there is no doubt that it will heal.

“It’s all about his rehabilitation, which will be slow and steady,” he said. “Then it will become real intense and I know he will work hard on making sure that he does the necessary things to get through the healing process.”

Sands, who is expected to leave the hospital on Wednesday when he will return to his home in Auburn to begin his general rehabilitation and prepare for his 33th birthday on Thursday, thanked Khan and the staff at the hospital for taking him through what has been a dramatic experience for him.

“I was pretty confident in doc (Khan) because he had spoken to me before. The main thing I wanted to know was when I was going to be back on the track,” said Sands, whose right leg was wrapped in a brace to support the bandage around the knee cap. “All I had to hear was that I’m going to be able to jump again, so I’m pretty excited about that because I haven’t won my goal yet. I’ve won too many bronze.”

Sands, comforted by his wife Danielle and his parents Elaine and Leevan Sands Sr, was having visitors in and out of his room for the majority of the time. He said he’s grateful for all of the support he has received, not just from those in London, but from around the world, especially in the Bahamas, who were sending emails offering him best wishes.

“I feel good. I’m just disappointed that I didn’t get the medal. But I love my country and I always go to war and battle for them,” he said. “I know it was down to me and I love the pressure. I know I was getting a medal. Everyone was depending on me. I was ready. I was ready to go for the medal, even though I had the pain with the tendinitis. That wasn’t going to stop me. Once I’m able to run down the run way, with pain, I’m still going to jump.

“I’m just determined like that. I always tell myself: ‘I will jump until my leg breaks for the Bahamas. That’s what I did. I fought, but the knee gave away. I told them to patch me up and put me back on the run way. But I’m excited and I thank God that I still came fifth with only three jumps. Fifth best in the world. I can’t complain. I’m just happy that my family was here.”

In the 15 years that he has been competing, Sands said he was grateful that this is his first surgery and that it was successful.

“I have no doubt in my mind that I will bounce back,” he said. “I’m just glad that it’s over.”

The Homerton University Hospital, according to Khan, is the designed hospital for the Olympic Games in London. He and a number of the doctors at the hospital are a part of the team of physicians elected by the hospital to treat sports and injury patients, in addition to specifically working out of the poly-clinic that is set up within the Games Village.

“We go to the poly-clinic, we see patients, we treat them and give them advice,” Khan said. “If they need surgery, we bring them here where they are further treated.”

Sands was one of those patients, whom Khan said, they took delight in assisting and hopefully will get him back on his feet again soon.