Facts + Statistics: Sports injuries

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Sports injuries

According to the National Safety Council (NSC), in 2021 exercise equipment accounted for about 409,000 injuries, the most in any category of sports and recreation.

 
Sports Injuries By Number Of Injuries, 2021

 

      Number of injuries by age   
Sport, activity or equipment Injuries (1) Younger than 5  5 to 14  15 to 24  25 to 64  65 and older 
Exercise, exercise equipment 409,224 7,246 30,552 76,078 222,405 72,943
Bicycles and accessories 375,797 12,425 92,242 48,396 173,442 49,293
Basketball 259,779 1,637 79,207 127,219 50,724 992
Skateboards, scooters, hoverboards 245,177 6,996 78,917 73,676 79,868 5,720
ATV's, mopeds, minibikes, etc. 238,404 4,244 44,933 62,275 113,484 13,468
Football 222,086 500 110,171 92,802 18,212 401
Playground equipment 178,043 46,991 114,875 5,787 9,179 1,211
Swimming, pools, equipment 155,787 19,131 65,906 21,625 37,057 12,069
Soccer 144,895 1,124 59,184 59,086 24,790 710
Trampolines 117,492 25,171 70,008 11,217 10,781 316
Baseball, softball 116,020 2,909 45,392 37,966 27,129 2,623
Skating (excl. In-line) 69,001 366 25,956 13,855 28,004 821
Golf 58,802 1,965 6,378 7,028 18,957 24,474
Snowskiing, snowboarding 57,065 15 11,006 21,247 22,019 2,779
Fishing 56,499 2,116 9,364 7,184 30,256 7,579
Lacrosse, rugby, misc. ball games 55,469 327 15,828 16,137 13,223 9,955
Horseback riding 41,923 742 6,779 9,252 20,183 4,967
Volleyball 38,574 57 13,487 18,766 6,075 189
Hockey 32,982 299 10,250 14,082 8,007 345
Martial arts 24,493 5 6,757 6,558 10,741 432
Beach, picnic, camping equipment 23,492 1,995 3,255 2,057 11,387 4,798
Racquet sports 20,693 117 2,758 3,452 6,911 7,455
Water skiing, tubing, surfing 18,220 84 3,282 4,654 9,726 474
Toboggans, sleds, snow discs, etc. 17,140 853 7,656 3,157 4,865 610
Track and field activities, equipment 15,882 10 5,638 7,048 2,718 469
Boxing 15,559 36 2,061 6,784 6,679 0
Nonpowder guns, BB'S, pellets 10,158 683 3,167 2,853 3,146 309

(1) Treated in hospital emergency departments.

Source: National Safety Council analysis of U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission NEISS data. National Safety Council. Injury Facts®.

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Bicycle crashes

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), 938 pedal cyclists were killed in 2020, a nine percent increase from 2019. In 34 percent of all fatal crashes with pedal cyclists in 2020, alcohol was involved—either via the motor vehicle driver or the cyclist. That same year, 79 percent of fatal pedal cyclist crashes happened in urban areas.  

 
Total Motor Vehicle and Pedalcyclist Fatalities, 2011-2020 (1)

 

  Fatalities  
Year Total Pedalcyclist Pedalcyclists as
a percent of
total fatalities
2011 32,479 682 2.1%
2012 33,782 734 2.2
2013 32,893 749 2.3
2014 32,744 729 2.2
2015 35,484 829 2.3
2016 37,806 853 2.3
2017 37,473 806 2.2
2018 36,835 871 2.4
2019 36,355 859 2.4
2020 38,824 938 2.4

(1) Pedalcyclists are defined by the National Highway Safety Administration as bicyclists and othe cyclists including riders of two-wheeled, nonmotorized vehicles, tricycles and unicycles.

Source: National Highway Traffic Administration.

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Pedalcyclists Killed And Fatality Rates By Age, 2020 (1)

 

Age group Killed Population
(000)		 Fatality rate
per 100,000
population
Under 5 5 19,301,292 0.03
5 to 9 7 20,237,711 0.03
10 to 14 36 20,754,423 0.17
Children (14 and under) 48 60,293,426 0.08
15 to 20 57 25,305,501 0.23
21 to 24 33 17,250,183 0.19
25 to 29 46 23,231,243 0.20
30 to 34 46 22,838,403 0.20
35 to 39 64 21,828,304 0.29
40 to 44 64 20,307,888 0.32
45 to 49 74 19,970,606 0.37
50 to 54 87 20,395,527 0.43
55 to 59 116 21,603,099 0.54
60-64 119 20,800,578 0.57
65-69 59 17,873,667 0.33
70 to 74 49 14,675,731 0.33
75 to 79 34 9,986,833 0.34
80 and over 30 13,123,134 0.23
Seniors (65 and over) 172 55,659,365 0.31
Total (2) 938 329,484,123 0.28

(1) Pedalcyclists are defined by the National Highway Safety Administration as bicyclists and othe cyclists including riders of two-wheeled, nonmotorized vehicles, tricycles and unicycles.
(2) Includes pedalcyclists of unknown age.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; Bureau of the Census.

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Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Fatalities, Pedalcyclist Fatalities, And Fatality Rates By State, 2020 (1)

 

      Pedalcyclists
State Resident population
(000)		 Total traffic
fatalities		 Fatalities Percent of total
traffic fatalities		 Fatalities per
100,000 population
 Alabama  4,922 934 10 1.10% 0.20
 Alaska  731 64 2 3.10 0.27
 Arizona  7,421 1054 33 3.10 0.44
 Arkansas  3,031 638 6 0.90 0.20
 California  39,368 3,847 129 3.40 0.33
 Colorado  5,808 622 15 2.40 0.26
 Connecticut  3,557 295 5 1.70 0.14
 Delaware  987 116 3 2.60 0.30
 District of Columbia  713 36 1 2.80 0.14
 Florida  21,733 3,331 170 5.10 0.78
 Georgia  10,710 1,664 32 1.90 0.30
 Hawaii  1,407 85 4 4.70 0.28
 Idaho  1,827 214 3 1.40 0.16
 Illinois  12,588 1,194 30 2.50 0.24
 Indiana  6,755 897 20 2.20 0.30
 Iowa  3,164 337 10 3.00 0.32
 Kansas  2,914 426 4 0.90 0.14
 Kentucky  4,477 780 5 0.60 0.11
 Louisiana  4,645 828 34 4.10 0.73
 Maine  1,350 164 2 1.20 0.15
 Maryland  6,056 567 15 2.60 0.25
 Massachusetts  6,894 343 10 2.90 0.15
 Michigan  9,967 1084 38 3.50 0.38
 Minnesota  5,657 394 10 2.50 0.18
 Mississippi  2,967 752 9 1.20 0.30
 Missouri  6,152 987 8 0.80 0.13
 Montana  1,081 213 0 (2) (3)
 Nebraska  1,938 233 1 0.40 0.05
 Nevada  3,138 317 11 3.50 0.35
 New Hampshire  1,366 104 2 1.90 0.15
 New Jersey  8,882 584 18 3.10 0.20
 New Mexico  2,106 398 8 2.00 0.38
 New York  19,337 1046 47 4.50 0.24
 North Carolina  10,601 1,538 26 1.70 0.25
 North Dakota  765 100 1 1.00 0.13
 Ohio  11,693 1,230 18 1.50 0.15
 Oklahoma  3,981 652 12 1.80 0.30
 Oregon  4,242 508 14 2.80 0.33
 Pennsylvania  12,783 1,129 20 1.80 0.16
 Rhode Island  1,057 67 2 3.00 0.19
 South Carolina  5,218 1,064 14 1.30 0.27
 South Dakota  893 141 0 (2) (3)
 Tennessee  6,887 1,217 13 1.10 0.19
 Texas  29,361 3,874 79 2.00 0.27
 Utah  3,250 276 8 2.90 0.25
 Vermont  623 62 1 1.60 0.16
 Virginia  8,591 850 7 0.80 0.08
 Washington  7,694 560 12 2.10 0.16
 West Virginia  1,785 267 3 1.10 0.17
 Wisconsin  5,833 614 12 2.00 0.21
 Wyoming  582 127 1 0.80 0.17
 U.S. Total  329,484 38,824 938 2.40% 0.28

(1) Bicyclists are defined by the National Highway Safety Administration as pedalcyclists, which are bicyclists and othe cyclists including riders of two-wheeled, nonmotorized vehicles, tricycles and unicycles.
(2) Less than 0.1 percent.
(3) Less than 0.01 per 100,000 population.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, National Highway Safety Administration.

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Total Traffic Fatalities And Pedalcyclist Traffic Fatalities And Fatality Rates By City, 2020 (1)

 

      Pedalcyclists Fatality rate per 100,000 population
City (2) Resident
population		 Total traffic
fatalities		 Fatalities As a percent of
total traffic
fatalities		 Total Pedalcyclist Pedalcyclist
rank (3)
New York, NY 8,253,213 235 17 7.20% 2.85 0.21 19
Los Angeles, CA 3,970,219 282 12 4.30 7.10 0.30 16
Chicago, IL 2,677,643 190 8 4.20 7.10 0.30 16
Houston, TX 2,316,120 266 10 3.80 11.48 0.43 10
Phoenix, AZ 1,708,127 224 5 2.20 13.11 0.29 15
Philadelphia, PA 1,578,487 166 5 3.00 10.52 0.32 15
San Antonio, TX 1,567,118 157 1 0.60 10.02 0.06 26
San Diego, CA 1,422,420 104 2 1.90 7.31 0.14 22
Dallas, TX 1,343,266 222 3 1.40 16.53 0.22 18
San Jose, CA 1,013,616 56 3 5.40 5.52 0.30 16
Austin, TX 995,484 94 4 4.30 9.44 0.40 11
Fort Worth, TX 927,720 110 1 0.90 11.86 0.11 25
Jacksonville, FL 920,570 178 10 5.60 19.34 1.09 3
Columbus, OH 903,852 81 1 1.20 8.96 0.11 25
Charlotte, NC 900,350 101 3 3.00 11.22 0.33 14
Indianapolis, IN 877,903 134 5 3.70 15.26 0.57 8
San Francisco, CA 866,606 31 1 3.20 3.58 0.12 24
Seattle, WA 769,714 26 1 3.80 3.38 0.13 23
Denver, CO 735,538 51 0 (4) 6.93 (5) 27
Washington, DC 712,816 36 1 2.80 5.05 0.14 22
Boston, MA 691,531 18 2 11.10 2.60 0.29 17
El Paso, TX 681,534 64 0 (4) 9.39 (5) 27
Nashville, TN 671,295 104 0 (4) 15.49 (5) 27
Detroit, MI 665,369 191 8 4.20 28.71 1.20 2
Las Vegas, NV 662,368 32 2 6.30 4.83 0.30 16
Oklahoma City, OK 662,314 81 2 2.50 12.23 0.30 16
Portland, OR 656,751 56 5 8.90 8.53 0.76 5
Memphis, TN 649,705 223 4 1.80 34.32 0.62 7
Louisville, KY 618,338 113 1 0.90 18.27 0.16 21
Milwaukee, WI 589,067 87 3 3.40 14.77 0.51 9
Baltimore, MD 586,131 62 1 1.60 10.58 0.17 20
Albuquerque, NM 562,540 105 4 3.80 18.67 0.71 6
Tucson, AZ 553,571 125 7 5.60 22.58 1.26 1
Fresno, CA 530,267 71 5 7.00 13.39 0.94 4
Mesa, AZ 528,159 47 2 4.30 8.90 0.38 13
Sacramento, CA 512,838 43 2 4.70 8.38 0.39 12
Atlanta, GA 512,550 81 0 (4) 15.80 (5) 27

(1) Ranked by city population. Pedalcyclists are defined by the National Highway Safety Administration as bicyclists and other cyclists including riders of two-wheeled, nonmotorized vehicles, tricycles and unicycles.
(2) Population of 500,000 or more.
(3) Cities with the same pedalcyclist fatality rate per million population receive the same rank.
(4) Less than 0.1 percent.
(5) Less than 0.01 per 100,000 population.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; U.S. Census Bureau.

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Watercraft accidents

In 2021, the number of recreational watercraft accidents and fatalities decreased from 2020; however the amount of property damage increased. Florida, California, and Texas remain the top three states for recreational watercraft accidents and deaths.

 
Recreational Watercraft Accidents, 2017-2021 (1)

 

  Accidents Fatalities    
Year Total Involving
alcohol
use (2)		 Total Involving
alcohol
use (2)		 Injuries Property
damage
($ millions)
2017 4,291 323 658 118 2,629 $46
2018 4,145 309 633 119 2,511 46
2019 4,168 330 613 128 2,559 55
2020 5,265 353 767 130 3,191 63
2021 4,439 330 658 110 2,641 68

(1) Includes accidents involving $2,000 or more in property damage. Includes U.S. territories and offshore accidents.
(2) The use of alcohol by a boat's occupants was a direct or indirect cause of the accident.

Source: U.S. Department Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard.

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OHV accidents

Children under the age of 16 accounted for 27 percent of all people injured in accidents involving off-highway vehicles (OHVs) in 2020, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

 
OHV-Related Deaths And Injuries, 2016-2020 (1)

 

  Estimated number of deaths Estimated number of injuries (2)
    Younger than 16   Younger than 16
Year Total Number Percent
of total		 Total Number Percent
of total
2016 763 110 14% 115,500 30,700 27%
2017 749 115 15 108,100 28,300 26
2018 699 73 10 95,000 24,800 26
2019 NA NA NA 96,000 25,800 27
2020 NA NA NA 112,300 30,400 27

(1) Off-Highway Vehicles (OHV) including All-Terrain Vehicles (ATV); Recreational Off-Highway Vehicles (ROV); and Utility-Terrain Vehicles (UTV)
(2) Emergency room-treated.

Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

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