Diver Taylor Forced to Abandon Season

LONDON, May 18. A long-term battle to overcome a shoulder injury has forced Olympic diving medalist Leon Taylor to cancel his season as he looks to eradicate the issue once and for all in time for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Instead of preparing himself for the British Championships in a little over a week's time, Taylor is trying to remedy the same problem that left him with no choice but to withdraw from the Melbourne Commonwealth Games on the eve of competition.

Two months down the line and rehabilitation to Taylor's right shoulder is far from complete. But in abandoning this season he plans to emerge from the painful setback with the physical attributes required to once again compete for the biggest of prizes.

The Olympic silver and World Champs bronze (10m Synchro) medalist has had some tough decisions in recent weeks but the 32-year-old is confident this season's sacrifice will see him return to his best form.

"My recovery has been much slower than I had hoped for and expected," said the Cheltenham-born Taylor who lives and trains in Sheffield. "I'm not out of the woods yet and have taken the difficult decision to cancel any involvement in the rest of the season to allow the shoulder to heal fully. I can't run the risk of competing and damaging it further, I have to look at the World Championships next year and the main focus of the Olympics in 2008."

Taylor has been out of the water since the disappointment of Melbourne and continues to receive the best medical treatment and advice to ensure a full recovery is made.

"My main focus now is to stabilize the shoulder so there's no danger of aggravating it the next time I compete," said Taylor. "The rehabilitation is a long process but I have the best people in the business working with me. I get plugged into all kinds of machines that read muscle output and this tells us which muscles are working too hard and others that aren't working at all.

"It gives us an indication of how we can address this imbalance, the route of the problem, and in essence it's like rewiring my shoulder so that it works in a completely different way."

An operation last year to put right an earlier injury that had hindered Taylor in the past looked to have been a success but while it cured the original problem it created another by disrupting the way his shoulder should work

"I'm trying to get the shoulder stable but it's proving to be a huge challenge. There are just so many things that aren't quite right with it so I'm taking my time to re-educate the joint to work in a slightly different way," said Taylor.

"I've been working closely with a medical team at the English Institute of Sport and we decided that trying to get back this season could cause the shoulder to go again."

Taylor hopes to be back in action by the end of the year but will not run the risk of further damage until his shoulder is ready.

"The plan is to be competitive by December and this gives me a chance of competing at the Melbourne World Championships in March," said Taylor. "I'm desperate to make that event as I missed out on the fun and glory in Melbourne this year."

He's already working to that aim with a demanding programme of land-based training as well as strength and conditioning.

"If everything goes according to plan I hope to return to the water in a few weeks," explained Taylor.

"No one has been more frustrated than me with the time I've had away from the water. I missed out on successes at the Commonwealth Games, a British team has just returned from tough meets in Canada and the U.S. and I'd love to be involved in the British Championships."

Taylor's absence from the British Championships in Manchester will certainly open doors for a younger generation coming through the system while other divers in action will include his Olympic and World Championship partner Peter Waterfield of Southampton.

The championships are being held at the Manchester Aquatic Center from May 26-28. Britain's brightest hopes for the future then take center stage in Sheffield at the Elite Junior Nationals between May 30 and June 2.

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