The injury curse over Australian Opal causes Olympic heartbreak after inspired comeback
Bec Allen’s injury curse has left her ‘shattered’ after a remarkable comeback from broken ribs and a collapsed lung. The shooter opens up on the brutal road back, and the core Opals group who can lead them back to the podium.
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Australian Opal Bec Allen’s string of poor luck at major tournaments has struck again on the eve of the Paris Games, with the sharpshooter ruled out of Australia’s quest for Olympic gold with another heartbreaking injury.
In Tokyo, the Opals were rattled by the dramatic departure of Liz Cambage on the eve of their Olympic campaign that cost them a potential gold medal. At the World Cup on home soil in 2022, Allen, 31, was brutally crunched in a hit that left her with broken ribs, a collapsed lung and handed her an extended stint on the sidelines.
Now after a remarkable comeback, a torn hamstring suffered in the Opals’ final practice match against Canada has put an end to her Paris Olympic dream- where she planned to take the Games by storm- and has the Aussie star “shattered.”
With a message on social media, Allen shared with her followers: “Heartbroken.” followed with “Right now I’m not ok, but I know with time I will be.”
A tweak to her right hamstring did see her subbed out from her last WNBA game before joining the Australian team in Spain, although speaking to Code Sports before she left the USA, Allen confirmed there were “no concerns” heading into camp.
It’s not confirmed if this current injury is to the same hamstring.
Shattered 💔
— Rebecca Allen (@becallen8) July 25, 2024
Dealt a cruel blow now at back-to-back major tournaments, Allen touched on her bittersweet experience in Sydney, sharing how on one hand she could “feel my lung actually bouncing” and on the other, got to be part of that bronze medal winning team.
And how proud she was to have made it back to the Opals team bound for Paris.
“It’s been one of the best experiences being a part of that group with us winning a medal there on home soil, having family, friends in the crowd,” Allen told Code Sports.
“And then when I finally got home to Melbourne, I had a collapsed lung and then broken ribs and so it became an emotional injury because, you get used to the stuff about shoulders, knees, whatever but when it’s an organ injury, if I was to have flown to Europe it could have been a lot worse.”
“Putting back on the green and gold for the qualifiers in Brazil, to make the Olympic team and then to go to the Olympics again it’s just special because it was a really hard two years.”
It wasn’t just the physical toll for Allen- almost 30 at the time of the World Cup injury- but the mental strain that the rehabilitation process had. The Melbourne-born baller seriously considered her career options, but ultimately wanted to play out her final playing years on her own terms.
“It’s the stages of grief, right? I think sometimes it can be a little dramatic because things feel like they’re at their worst and so you’ve just got to go through the cycles of it,” Allen said.
“There was a moment where I did think about stopping, I’m not going to lie, because I felt hurt but at the same time, I think it’s in some ways been a blessing for me, it helped me refocus, recenter.”
An experience that sadly for Allen will be replicated in Paris, where she will cheer on her Opals from the sidelines, striving for their first Olympic medal since 2012.
A team with a primed core group including the likes of Steph Talbot (2022 World Cup All-Star Five), Ezi Magbegor (WNBA Champion, WNBA All-Defensive Second Team), captain Tess Madgen (WNBL Champion) and Alanna Smith- who worked her way back into the Olympic team after taking her game to Europe- has notched up their fair share of international experience together and who will be taking it upon themselves to lead the charge toward the top of the podium.
Alongside the Hall of Famer and five-time Olympian Lauren Jackson of course.
Now Allen is optimistic to see what the group can achieve as they bounce back from a disappointing Tokyo Games.
“We’ve obviously got some younger ones that have come into the group that are 1000% the future. And I hope that it’s a moment for them to absorb it, soak it up, be like, shit, I’m at an Olympics, this is amazing. And then the next one that they go to really feel that sort of a bit more pressure on them, just stepping up,” Allen said.
“Being a part of the Opals is that you start as a junior coming through to being a more senior player. There’s a real core group that has stayed together and we’re just going to slip right into how well we know each other.”
“Everyone wants each other’s success and I think that that’s when you can really build, especially in these big games where emotions are high. I really hope to see an awesome tournament from Steph (Talbot) from Ezi (Magbegor), from everyone, for Tess (Madgen) as the captain.”
“She (Alanna Smith) said I’m going to put myself in a position where you can’t not pick me. She’s obviously an incredible player, but I really just love how she’s just honed in and said, okay, I’m going to get this, she’s going to be an awesome addition for us.”
“Lauren has really come in and she’s playing her role, but she’s also throwing in her wisdom. She’s throwing in her experiences she’s had, so she’ll speak up and all that in the right moments.”
With the Olympics scheduled in the middle of the WNBA season, USA-based Opals joined the rest of the team in Spain less than two weeks before their first group phase match, marking the first time the entire team had been together since Olympic qualifiers in February, unlike their male counterparts, the Boomers, who have been in training camp and playing practice matches since mid-June.
But a shortened pre-Games camp won’t bother one of the most decorated Australian sporting teams in history.
“We’ve had to do it our way because it’s our way of making money,” Allen said, “But that’s our way of also playing in the best league and I’m so grateful that Sandy (Brondello, Opals coach) allows that. She’s also here and she’s earning her check too, so it’s hard to tell players you can’t go do that.”
The Opals are on the board in Europe - defeating Spain 75 - 66 in Segovia this morning.
— Basketball Australia (@BasketballAus) July 22, 2024
📊: https://t.co/yP5B2Pmm6t
ðŸ€: https://t.co/aVOB9pbe5Q#WeAreBasketballpic.twitter.com/THTp0ulNQR
“That’s also part of the preparation, but yeah, I think that the really cool part about our group is the continuity that we’ve had, this isn’t a totally new team.”
The timing of an in-season Olympic Games does spark a discussion around the high performance risks of playing in a fast-paced basketball season while ensuring athletes are physically primed for the intensity of a two-week Olympic campaign.
“I’ve got to fly from Paris to Chicago because we’re (Phoenix, WNBA) on a road trip again so I’m on the road for like six weeks.”
OPALS GROUP PHASE SCHEDULE:
Vs Nigeria: Monday, 29th July, 7pm AEST
Vs Canada: Thursday, 1st August, 9:30pm AEST
Vs France: Monday, 5th August,5am AEST
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