While he feared a total rupture of the knee ligament, Maxime Machenaud “only” suffered a partial rupture and will therefore not be operated on. His Bayonne teammate Baptiste Chouzenoux will, however, have to go to the operating table to repair the biceps tendon in his right arm.
A little relief for Maxime Machenaud. Even if the diagnosis is serious, his season is probably not over and he hopes to return in the heart of winter. Saturday, during the defeat of his Bayonne team in Pau (47-24) at the opening of the 6th day of Top 14, the 36-year-old scrum half had to leave the field, in tears, after a collision with Emerick Setiano, who had fallen on his knee.
The Bayonnais underwent examinations, and while he feared a total rupture of the right knee ligament, it is “only” partial and he will avoid the operation. His absence is estimated at between three and four months. It could therefore return around January-February. “I had a little hope following yesterday’s images but the verdict is clear: rupture of the cruciate ligaments, sprain of the internal lateral ligament grade 3 and sprained ankle. I had felt it but it is difficult for me to find the words,” wrote the former Bordeaux-Bègles, Agen and Racing 92 player on his social networks.
Three months for Chouzenoux
But Maxime Machenaud assures that he will return before the end of the season and will not retire next summer: “Believe me, I am not at the end, not ready to turn the page and not ready to stop. I am challenging myself to come back before the end of the season and not to stop my career this year because it was already out of the question before this injury. I love this sport too much, I love this terrain too much, and I still have, I feel, great human and sporting adventures to experience. I want my children to see me play, to see me fight, to surpass myself in this game that I cannot do without until my body and my mind ask me to do so simultaneously. »
His teammate Baptiste Chouzenoux, also injured in Pau, will not escape surgery, following his rupture of the biceps tendon in his right arm. The 32-year-old third row will play billiards in the coming days and will be absent for three months. Currently 6th in the Top 14, will Rowing manage to get back on track without these two players?
