TOKYO — Had there been no coronavirus pandemic, Dayshalee Salamán wouldn’t be at the Summer Olympics.
She wouldn’t be wearing a Puerto Rico uniform as she takes the court Tuesday. She wouldn’t be representing her homeland as it makes its first ever appearance in the women’s basketball competition. She wouldn’t be living out her dream.
On Feb. 9, 2020, during the qualifying tournament in which Puerto Rico secured a spot in the Tokyo Games, Salamán blew out her left knee. It buckled when she landed after a layup.
The dislocation snapped her anterior cruciate ligament and sprained her medial collateral ligament.