Wheeled motor sports
Wheeled motor sports include motorbike racing and jumping, car racing, all-terrain vehicle riding and go-carting.
An estimated 264,000 Australians aged 15 and over participated in wheeled motor sports in 2021–22 (ASC, 2022). There were 3,800 injury hospitalisations attributed to wheeled motor sports – 3,500 males and 360 females. For those aged 15 and over, the rate of hospitalisation was about 1,100 per 100,000 participants.
The age-standardised rate of hospitalisations for injuries from wheeled motor sports decreased by 15% between 2020–21 and 2021–22 (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Trend in injury hospitalisations from wheeled motor sports, by sex, 2012–13 to 2021–22
Line chart shows upward trend of hospitalisations from 2012–13 to 2014–15 and a slight dip in 2019–20.
For more detail, see data tables B1–2.
The highest number of hospitalisations was in the 15–19 age group (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Age distribution of injury hospitalisations from wheeled motor sports, 2021–22
Source: AIHW NHMD.
For more detail, see data table A14.
Almost 6 in 10 of these hospitalisations were fractures (59%) (Figure 3).
Figure 3: Top 5 injury hospitalisations from wheeled motor sports, by type of injury as a proportion, 2021–22
Note: Type of injury is derived from the principal diagnosis.
Source: AIHW NHMD.
For more detail, see data table A25.
There were 170 hospitalisations for concussion – 140 males and 27 females.
The main injuries were most commonly to the arm or shoulder (26%), and the leg or hip (26%) (Figure 4).
Figure 4: Injury hospitalisations from wheeled motor sports, by body part injured, as a proportion, 2021–22
Diagram of human body shows percentage of body parts injured in hospitalisations in 2021–22. Ankle and feet contributed the least at 5% of cases.
Notes
1. Body part injured is derived from the principal diagnosis.
2. ‘Trunk’ includes thorax, abdomen, lower back, lumbar spine & pelvis.
Source: AIHW NHMD.
For more detail, see data table A26.
Where the cause of injury was specified, it was most often a road transport accident (87%) (Figure 5).
Figure 5: Cause of injury as a proportion when specified, injury hospitalisations from wheeled motor sports, 2021–22
Source: AIHW NHMD.
For more detail, see data table A27.
Australian Sports Commission (ASC) (2022) AusPlay, ASC, Australian Government, accessed 8 January 2024.