Yazdani set for up 18 months out with shoulder injury
Iranian wrestling great Hassan Yazdani will have to undergo a second surgery on his injured shoulder in a year and could face up to 18 months on the sidelines, Dr. Sohrab Kayhani, the head of the national squad’s medical team said.
Yazdani, who had been out of action for eight months before June’s Ranking Series event in Budapest, chased a second Olympic gold in Paris earlier in August, but had to settle for the silver after a 7-1 loss to Bulgarian Magomed Ramazanov in the 86kg final.
Yazdani showed no signs of an injury on his to final way but the problem flared up again in the final as the Iranian struggled with the problem from the get-go, calling for treatment on several occasions throughout the six minutes of action.
“Yazdani could be out for 12 to 18 months to have a full recovery,” Dr. Kayhani told IRNA on Thursday, adding: “We’re going to decide in the coming days if he should undergo the second surgery in Iran or overseas.”
Asked if Yazdani had to have more time of rehabilitation before making his return to action, Dr. Kayhani said: “His surgeon had cleared him to take part at the Games and his situation had been fully assessed in Budapest to make sure he wouldn’t have any problem in Paris.
“I’m sure he will be fit and ready to compete again in the World Championships in two years,” added Dr. Kayhani.