In the world of sports, people take many risks, which often leads to injuries. However, certain sports will put the individual at a bit more risk when it comes to being injured. The most dangerous women’s sports are not for the faint of heart. You will truly need to have some guts to play some of these sports.
What are the most dangerous women’s sports? By far, the most dangerous sport that men and women can often do is MMA. If we set aside some of the extreme sports like rock climbing and focus more on the mainstream sports, Mixed Martial Arts would be one of the most dangerous sports that any female can compete in.
Determining which sports are the most dangerous is often a tough task. With so many variations and extreme sports like cliff diving or skydiving becoming popular, there is no doubt that some of these sports can jeopardize your life.
Today, we will look at some of the most dangerous female sports in the world.
You might also enjoy reading: Top 14 Sports Ranked By Difficulty.
Most Dangerous Women’s Sports
While some of the extreme sports would certainly make it to the top of the list, the numbers are lower when we look at injuries. This is mainly due to fewer women competing in these different sports.
For the sake of this article, we will focus more on some of the popular mainstream sports that many compete in.
1- Mixed Martial Arts
With the rise of the popularity of the UFC, more women are starting to enjoy fighting and are learning MMA. With the surge in numbers in this sport, it is easy to see why it is one of the most dangerous sports anyone can do. MMA consists of full contact and often leads to serious injuries, especially to the head and skull.
Studies have suggested that as many as 22.9 to 28.6 people per 100 are injured when practicing MMA.
Bear in mind that these statistics apply to both men and women, but you can see that it gives you almost a 30% chance of being injured once you go into a fight. With a rise in popularity, we are sure that these numbers will continue to rise.
2- Horseback Riding
You would think that sports, which involve racing, would be far more dangerous than horseback riding. However, motorbike riders have an injury rate of one injury for every 7,000 hours of racing.
When it comes to riding horses, the number is much higher, and as many as 1 injuries would occur for every 350 hours of horseback riding (Source: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons)
Additionally, some of the injuries sustained can be far worse than those racing. Since these riders are kitted with the minimum safety gear, they often land underneath horses and can be seriously injured during the process.
If you want to avoid being injured, horseback riding might be one of those sports you should avoid.
3- Soccer
Soccer is arguably the most popular sport in the world and has the largest following and fan base. Soccer is often considered a universal language of hope, and while people might not understand each other, they all understand soccer.
However, soccer is not as harmless as you might think and often involves serious injuries. One study published in the journal Pediatrics suggests that concussions are almost double the rate in women’s soccer than it is in male football.
Football is a contact sport, which often leads to plenty of injuries. However, you are more likely to be injured when playing soccer. Keep in mind that these numbers can often be misconstrued due to the number of participants.
4- Field Hockey
Field hockey might not seem like a contact sport, but due to the nature of the game and how hard the ball tends to be, it puts players at serious risk of being injured whilst they are playing.
Field hockey is a game that requires plenty of gear. Not only do players require a hockey stick, but padding and mouthguards are also prevalent.
One of the injuries that players often face is being hit in the face with a hockey ball. While this is technically banned in the sport, it could often lead to serious injuries.
Since the game involves plenty of movement, you also risk injuring your limbs, with ACL tears not uncommon.
The most common risks related to field hockey include the following:
- Low-back pain.
- Tendinitis of the hip, ankle, or knee.
- Stress fractures of the foot.
According to the Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego, the best way to prevent common injuries when playing field hockey is to wear appropriate protective gear, including a mouth guard and eye protection.
5- Basketball
Another sport that often gives us plenty of injuries is basketball. Basketball is a fast sport involving plenty of movement, and while the contact is limited with other players, you need to make occasional contact in the game.
Fortunately, most injuries are not traumatic injuries due to contact with other players. One of the main causes of injuries would be to limbs and joints, which are often a result of cuts and other movements on the course.
It is very easy to overload some of the tendons in your leg and often sustain an injury. Basketball is one of the few sports that would often cause players to get injured without making contact with other players.
6- Cheerleading
Since cheerleading is not a contact sport, it is surprising to have to list it as one of the world’s most dangerous sports for female athletes.
However, cheerleaders often need to perform significant stunts, which could lead to some serious injury when these stunts are not executed to the utmost perfection.
More and more female cheerleaders are pushing the envelope due to the sport’s competitiveness, which could often lead to players falling and sustaining some serious damage.
A National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research (NCCSIR) study discovered that collegiate cheerleading accounted for about 70.5% of all female fatal sports injuries and high school cheerleading for about 65.2% of all high school female sports injuries.
Gymnastics might seem similar, but since it is performed in a padded environment, the gymnasts often have some mitigation when moves do not go as planned.
How To Prevent Injuries In Sports?
With so many injuries in different sports, we must look at some of the ways you can prevent injuries from happening. We have isolated a few ways experts suggest you can avoid being injured whilst playing sports.
Here are some of the top methods that you can use to prevent injuries.
- Improve Fitness: One of the main reasons for people being injured is a lack of fitness. You must train your muscles to ensure that you sustain adequate fitness levels, which would help prevent injuries (Source: The Johns Hopkins University)
- Understanding Safety Rules: Another important factor to consider is the sport’s safety rules. If you understand some of the safety rules of the sport you are competing in, you should be able to avoid potential injuries.
- Practice Makes Perfect: Another problem is that people think they can step into a sport and start playing. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and many sports are technique driven. The practice would ensure that you understand these fundamentals. (Source: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai)
- Wear The Right Gear: While games like soccer require minimal gear, other sports like field hockey would require plenty of protective gear. You must wear the right gear to ensure safety and protection (Source: University of Washington)
- Know When To Stop: Finally, many players push themselves beyond their limits. One of the problems with pushing yourself beyond your limits is that you will often strain some muscles. You must know when to stop.
While many more ways would enable you to avoid injuries, medical experts would agree that when you have these five accounted for, you should be ready for the game. It is important to take note of these possible causes to ensure that injuries are limited as far as possible.
Should I Let My Daughter Play Sports?
With so many potential injuries and risks, it is not uncommon for people to be hesitant to let their children participate in sports. However, the benefits of playing sports far outweigh the drawbacks of not competing.
Sports would allow your kids to develop more cognitive and physical abilities, which would enable them to develop much better. Additionally, team sports would allow the person to learn some of the basics of playing in a team and make sure that you are comfortable in this setting. It could help improve social skills as well.
Essentially, you should allow your kids to play sports, and while it might be dangerous for them to do so, you must allow them to have some fun with their friends and learn new skills.
Is it True Tha Cheerleading Is The Most Dangerous Sport?
Cheerleading is among the most dangerous women’s sports. According to a study issued by the Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, high school cheerleaders will generally experience an average of 3.8 injuries during their cheerleading careers, whereas college-level athletes will suffer an average of 3.5.
In addition, football and cheerleading have the highest incidence of catastrophic injuries and accidents, averaging at least one death per year of cheerleaders between 1991 to 2015.
The most common factors that cause the high injury rate in cheerleading include the following:
- Performance accidents.
- Lack of proper equipment.
- Poor training and conditioning.
- And inadequate coach supervision.
What to read next:
- Field Hockey Vs. Lacrosse: Differences and similarities, which one is harder?
- Lacrosse Positions Explained: What does each position in lacrosse do?
- Is Soccer Aerobic or Anaerobic? (Let’s find out!)
Wrapping Up
Sports can be dangerous, and some sports might be more challenging for women than they are for men. However, sport is an important part of development and would allow the kid to learn some new skills.
While some of these sports are dangerous, you can take the necessary precautions to limit these injuries. Let us know in the comment section if you agree.