Start with the question
What does a reported injury event mean in NICA research?
Source findingNICA’s 2018–2022 surveillance recorded 2,655 injury events across 119,098 student-athlete seasons. Wrist/hand, head/concussion and shoulder/clavicle were the leading injury locations. These findings concern reported acute injuries in organized youth cross-country participation.[1]
Source findingThe coach study recorded 401 injury events across 59,545 coach-seasons. Shoulder/clavicle, head/concussion and wrist/hand were the leading injury locations. Coaches accompanied students during practice but did not compete in NICA races.[2]
SynthesisThe manuscripts concern reported injury events, not risk per ride or hour. Volunteer reporting and incomplete riding-exposure information limit interpretation. Their figures do not establish whether coaches are safer than students for the same amount or type of riding.[1][2]
MTN educational interpretationA coaching discussion can connect injury preparation to assessment, care and getting a rider to appropriate help. That educational connection is distinct from evidence that a course changes injury outcomes.[1][2]
Study at a glance
Who—and what—was studied?
Population
NICA surveillance, 2018–2022: 2,655 reported injury events across 119,098 student-athlete seasons; 401 events across 59,545 coach-seasons. These are separate cohorts.
Design and setting
Two observational surveillance studies; reported injury events are related to participant-seasons, not ride hours or unique-person risk.
Explore the reported events · 2018–2022
Different riders.
Different injury patterns.
Explore each cohort separately. These percentages describe reported injury events, not the risk to every rider.
% of reported injury events
2,655 reported injury events · 119,098 student-athlete-seasons
Student riders: 616 of 2,655 reported events involved wrist / hand.
Selected locations only; body locations can overlap. “Head / concussion” does not mean every event was a confirmed concussion. The cohorts do not establish a student-versus-coach safety ranking.
Reviewed version: PMC author manuscript. Publisher-final versions and publisher-only supplements remain unverified. Source and extraction location ↓
How to read this graphic
Participant-seasons are not unique riders or riding hours. Volunteer reporting may miss injuries, and the studies do not measure comparable riding exposure. Coach detailed-diagnosis and time-loss fields are excluded because source totals are inconsistent.
Keep the boundaries visible
What this evidence cannot tell us.
- Volunteer reporting may miss injuries.
- Participant-seasons do not measure riding exposure in hours or unique-person risk.
- Body locations may overlap within an injury event; head/concussion does not establish a confirmed concussion in every case.
- No direct student-versus-coach safety ranking.
- Coach detailed-diagnosis and time-loss fields are excluded because source totals are inconsistent.
- Reviewed versions are PMC author manuscripts; publisher-final versions and publisher-only supplements remain unverified.
Read the originals
Sources & review record.
1. Ehn M et al. The NICA injury surveillance system: results from five years of student-athlete injury data. Research in Sports Medicine. 2025;33(4):488–499. Online March 14, 2025. doi:10.1080/15438627.2025.2478399.
FULL TEXT REVIEWEDResults: combined 2018–2022 events and participation; Figure 1: 616/2655 wrist/hand, 610/2655 head/concussion, 422/2655 shoulder/clavicle.
PMC author manuscript reviewed; publisher-final version and publisher-only supplements unverified.
Open original source ↗ (opens in a new tab)Access, attribution & rights notes
Complete-source audit supplied by the research review task, October 15, 2026. Bounded editorial verification of the displayed claims, units and source mapping completed October 15, 2026. Full-source reviewer read the complete PMC author manuscript, all tables and figures.
No explicit reuse license established. Fresh prose and independently designed factual graphics only.
Review record: 2026-10-16. Article version: 0.1.2.
2. Teramoto M et al. Injury epidemiology of youth cross-country mountain biking coaches: analysis of data from the National Interscholastic Cycling Association injury surveillance system. Research in Sports Medicine. 2025;33(4):500–511. Online March 18, 2025. doi:10.1080/15438627.2025.2478401.
FULL TEXT REVIEWEDMethods and Results; Table 3: 71/401 wrist/hand, 72/401 head/concussion, 131/401 shoulder/clavicle. Detailed diagnoses/time-loss data excluded.
PMC author manuscript reviewed; publisher-final version and publisher-only supplements unverified.
Open original source ↗ (opens in a new tab)Access, attribution & rights notes
Complete-source audit supplied by the research review task, October 15, 2026. Bounded editorial verification of the displayed claims, units and source mapping completed October 15, 2026. Full-source reviewer read the complete PMC author manuscript, all tables and figures.
No explicit reuse license established. No publisher graphics reused.
Review record: 2026-10-16. Article version: 0.1.2.
How each passage is supported
Paragraph 1 · Source finding
Results: combined 2018–2022 injury events and participation; Figure 1
Sources 1 · Version 0.1.2Paragraph 2 · Source finding
Methods: coach participation; Results and Table 3: combined injury-location totals
Sources 2 · Version 0.1.2Paragraph 3 · Synthesis
Methods: denominator definitions; Discussion and limitations in both author manuscripts
Sources 1, 2 · Version 0.1.2Paragraph 4 · MTN educational interpretation
MTN educational interpretation, not a course-effect analysis
Sources 1, 2 · Version 0.1.2