Black Sticks veteran Kayla Whitelock’s dreams of a fifth Olympics campaign have come to a heartbreaking end with her knee injury confirmed as serious this afternoon.
The Black Sticks announced in a press release the four-time Olympian has torn the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her knee and is now unavailable for the Tokyo Olympics.
Whitelock, with 260 caps for her country, injured her right knee early in the fourth and final match of the trans-Tasman series against Australia in Palmerston North last night.
Black Sticks head coach Graham Shaw said his heart went out to the defender.
“It’s often an overused term but Kayla truly is a legend of our game, and it was a heart-breaking moment when she shared the extent of her injury with the team today,” Shaw said.
“Kayla will be a massive loss to the team both on and off the field in Tokyo.”
Whitelock was hoping to add one final chapter to her impressive career with a fifth and final Olympics campaign in Tokyo after taking breaks from the sport for injuries, motherhood and even a brief retirement.
She told 1 NEWS last month she knew it would be a tough ask.
"It's going to be tough, no doubt about it to make the squad for Tokyo,” she said at the time.
“Ideally I hope to finish there, but if that's not the case it's not the case. The journey I've had is pretty special, and to look back at all these memories is pretty cool.”
Black Sticks Captain Stacey Michelsen said many players, including herself, had looked up to Whitelock as youngsters.
“Kayla was an inspiration to all of the current Black Sticks when we were growing up and continued to play that role over her entire career.
“We are absolutely devastated that her Olympic dream has ended this way.”
Whitelock would have joined Barbara Kendall and Valerie Adams as the only Kiwi women to attend five Olympics if she’d made it to Tokyo.
Both Black Sticks squads for the Olympics will be named on Thursday 10 June.
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