Obama gets 12 stitches in lip for basketball injury

[Ng'wanza Madaso]

Obama gets 12 stitches in lip for basketball injury


By Scott Wilson

President Barack Obama walks with a U.S. Secret Service agent back to his vehicle after playing a private game of basketball at Fort McNair in Washington, Friday, Nov. 26, 2010. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)


A holiday hoops outing with friends and family on Friday turned a bit rough for President Obama, who ended the game with a visit to the White House Medical Unit for a dozen stitches in his lip.

Obama and his basketball crew, which included presidential aide (and former Duke University forward) Reggie Love and family in town for the Thanksgiving holiday, arrived early Friday at Fort McNair for a full-court game. On his return to the White House a few hours later, Obama headed for the doctor's office located on the ground floor of the White House, where he was sewn up.

In a statement, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said, "After being inadvertently hit with an opposing player's elbow in the lip while playing basketball with friends and family, the President received 12 stitches today administered by the White House Medical Unit."

The statement didn't identify the player.

The medical staff that treated Obama used a finer filament than usual, allowing for more numerous and tighter stitches and, as a result, a smaller scar. Obama received a local anesthetic while he was being stitched up.

By Scott Wilson | November 26, 2010; 3:01 PM ET

washingtonpost.com

 

[Yegomasika]

I hope he was not playing against Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity?.

 

[Shaycas]

soory mr obama

 

[Yegomasika]

 

[Herbalist Dr MziziMkavu]

AP – President Barack Obama, with an ice pack over his mouth, looks out the second floor window of the White …

• Slideshow:President Barack Obama

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE, Associated Press Darlene Superville, Associated Press – 16 mins ago

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama needed 12 stitches in his upper lip after taking an errant elbow during a pickup basketball game Friday morning with family and friends visiting for the Thanksgiving holiday, the White House said.

First word of the injury came in a statement from nearly three hours after the incident.
The did not initially name the person who caused the injury, but identified him later Friday as Rey Decerega, director of programs for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.

Obama received the stitches under local anesthesia in the doctor's office on the ground floor of the White House after returning home. Doctors used a smaller filament than typically used, which increases the number of stitches but makes a tighter stitch and leaves a smaller scar.

The president had gone to nearby to indulge in a game of basketball, one of his favorite athletic pursuits. It was a five-on-five contest involving family and friends. Among the players were Obama's nephew, Avery Robinson, Education Secretary Arne Duncan and, Obama's personal assistant, who played at Duke University.

The White House said the injury happened during their fifth and final game when Decerega turned to take a shot and hit Obama, who was playing defense, in the mouth with his elbow.

Obama emerged from the building after about 90 minutes of play, wearing a short-sleeve T-shirt and gym pants, and was seen dabbing at his mouth with what appeared to be a wad of gauze. A few hours later, reporters who had gathered on the White House driveway for the arrival of the Christmas tree saw the president in an upstairs window,

pressing an ice pack against his mouth before he stood and walked away.
"After being inadvertently hit with an opposing player's elbow in the lip while playing basketball with friends and family, the president received 12 stitches today administered by the White House Medical Unit," Gibbs said.

Decerega issued a statement through the White House late Friday. He did not immediately respond to an e-mail request from The Associated Press for independent comment.

"I learned today the president is both a tough competitor and a good sport," the statement said. "I enjoyed playing basketball with him this morning. I'm sure he'll be back out on the court again soon."
obeyed all traffic stops, the custom for nonofficial trips, during the return to the White House.

In February, Obama, 49, was deemed to be in excellent health and fit for duty after his first medical checkup as president. Doctors reported then that Obama had yet to kick a smoking habit, takes anti-inflammatory medication to relieve chronic tendinitis in his left

knee and should make dietary changes to reduce his cholesterol levels.
Obama was told to return for another physical exam in August 2011, after he turns 50. In addition to regular pickup basketball games, Obama is also an avid golfer.
Obama had no public events scheduled during the long holiday weekend.

His stitched lip, however, could make for some interesting small talk on Tuesday, when Obama is to meet with the congressional leadership. The session originally was announced for Nov. 18, but was delayed after Republicans, who will control the House and increase their numbers in the Senate come January, said they couldn't accommodate the president.

Medical help is always nearby for U.S. presidents. A doctor or nurse is stationed at the White House around the clock and accompanies the president in his motorcade and aboard

Recent presidents have had a number of medical scares.
George W. Bush choked on a pretzel and briefly lost consciousness, falling and hurting his head. Bill Clinton had surgery and used crutches for months for a torn tendon in his knee when he stumbled on steps at the Florida home of golf pro Greg Norman.

The elder Bush, George H.W. Bush, was hospitalized for an erratic heartbeat while jogging at Camp David, a problem later diagnosed as a thyroid ailment. The senior Bush also collapsed at a state dinner in Tokyo, which the White House blamed on an intestinal flu.

Jimmy Carter fainted briefly while jogging near Camp David. Ronald Reagan was shot in the chest in a 1981 assassination attempt.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney, 69, has had five heart attacks since age 37. He had surgery this year to install a pump to help his heart work. Cheney said he has congestive heart failure.

Source: Obama gets 12 stitches after errant elbow to mouth - Yahoo! News

 

[boma2000]

ndo mambo ya michezo na kuwa mkakamavu ili ufanye kazi vema. siyo marais wetu bongo wanalala tu mazoezi kidogo tu

 

[Yegomasika]

ndo mambo ya michezo na kuwa mkakamavu ili ufanye kazi vema. siyo marais wetu bongo wanalala tu mazoezi kidogo tu

Hivi hata hayo mazoezi kidogo wanayafanya kweli?.

 

[Keykey]

Some have speculated that an upset Michelle Obama clocked the President with a short right cross, but our investigation has shown that she prefers a left hook instead.

 

[Leornado]

Hivi hata hayo mazoezi kidogo wanayafanya kweli?.

Saa ngapi na nyumba ntobho kila kona.

 

[Yegomasika]

Injured Obama still has game
By: Abby Phillip
November 27, 2010 07:54 PM EST
Venturing out of the White House for the first time since his headline-grabbing sports accident Friday, President Barack Obama was in the stands at Howard University Saturday for the men's basketball game against Oregon State University, where his brother-in-law Craig Robinson is the head coach.

Arriving just minutes before the tipoff, the president sat directly behind the Oregon State bench in Howard's mostly empty Burr Stadium, accompanied by first lady Michelle Obama, mother-in-law Marian Robinson and daughters Sasha and Malia.

The president had sustained a bloody lip while playing in a pickup basketball game Friday morning - a gash that needed a dozen stitches to close - but Obama's injury was nearly imperceptible, according to the White House press pool report.

It happened during the fifth game Obama was playing with friends and family, including Education Secretary Arne Duncan, nephew Avery Robinson and personal assistant Reggie Love - a former Duke University basketball player. During the game, opposing player Reynaldo Decerega, the director of programs at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, had the ball and Obama was defending him; Decerega turned into the president on his way to the basket and inadvertently elbowed him in the mouth.

Because of the injury, Obama skipped a ceremony in which the first family receives the White House Christmas tree. As first lady Michelle Obama appeared, the president was photographed watching the ceremony from a window in the White House, holding what appeared to be an ice pack to his mouth.

Since then, Decerega, a University of Virginia graduate, has catapulted from relative obscurity into the global spotlight for sending the president to the doctor during a basketball game. A CHCI spokesperson said that news reporters from around the world have made inquiries about the "unfortunate" incident, but Decerega has rejected the publicity and has insisted on maintaining his privacy.

In a statement Friday, Decerega said that the president is a "tough competitor and a good sport" who won't let the injury affect him.

"I enjoyed playing basketball with him this morning," Decerega said. "I'm sure he'll be back out on the court again soon."

Decerega recently was selected as one of 12 national leaders for the MillerCoors Lideres campaign, which recognizes Hispanic leaders who work to advance Latino communities across the country. He recently participated in a weeklong executive education program on leadership development at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Decerega has played basketball with the president before, according to the White House.

Basketball has long been Obama's signature recreation - even before coming to the White House. Besides family, friends and members of his Cabinet, the president has shared the court with elite players including the University of North Carolina men's team.

On his 49th birthday in August, he played pickup games with a group of past and present NBA All-Stars, including Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Magic Johnson.

Obama isn't the first president to suffer a sports-related mishap. President George W. Bush took a tumble on his mountain bike that left him bruised and scraped in 2004; President Bill Clinton needed knee surgery in 1997 after he fell down some stairs at pro golfer Greg Norman's Florida home; and in 1979 President Jimmy Carter, an avid runner, collapsed while competing in a 10K race in Maryland.
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