Sports

Injured Alexandre Despatie will likely be ready for Olympics

Quebec diver Alexandre Despatie will return to Montreal in the coming days and spend two more weeks recovering from a head injury suffered during practice before returning to his training for the Summer Olympics.

Tests on the Canadian diver showed no signs of concussion

Olympic diving team member Alexandre Despatie was injured Wednesday during a practice dive in Spain. (Graham Hughes/Canadian Press)

Quebec diver Alexandre Despatie will return to Montreal in the coming days and spend two more weeks recovering from a head injury suffered during practice before returning to his training for the Summer Olympics.

The two-time Olympic silver medallist was injured during a training dive at the Spanish Grand Prix this week.

Despatie, whose head grazed the board, leaving a 10-centimetre cut near his hairline, underwent surgery at a Madrid hospital Wednesday to close a significant gash.

"With all the tests he's done, there's no sign of concussion, so that's great news," Marie-Annick L'Allier, spokeswoman for the Canadian Diving Team, said Friday.

His wound also shows no sign of infection, she said.

Despatie, 27, will be supervised by a doctor in Montreal as well as his fitness team members, who have developed a program to determine the next steps of his recovery.

L'Allier said all signs are positive that Despatie will be ready for the London Games, but medical staff will be watching his wound since he can't return to the pool until it is fully closed.

Despatie is schedule to leave for the Games in mid-July with the rest of the Canadian team.

The opening ceremony for the Olympics is July 27. The men's springboard event starts Aug. 6.