At the Sooners’ first press conference of 2021, head coach K.J. Kindler delivered news about junior Olivia Trautman that altered Oklahoma’s season.
For the second year in a row, Trautman fractured her left heel and was set to miss the “first half” of the season, according to Kindler. Unlike her 2020 injury, there was no singular incident that led to her second fracture. Trautman knew something was wrong, but kept working in the gym until she struggled to walk. That’s when she finally sought medical guidance, and learned her heel was damaged again.
This time, her doctors advised her to undergo surgery. She did, and was in a walking boot for several weeks afterward. Prior to OU’s meet against Denver on Feb. 7, Kindler gave March 5 as a potential return date for Trautman. Despite not being listed in the pre-meet lineup, Trautman beat Kindler’s expectations by two weeks and made a surprise return on bars in a quad meet at North Carolina State on Feb. 19.
“We always spoke positively about everything,” said Trautman’s mother, Lisa. “We never said ‘we're worried about her not getting back,’ because of course she's coming back. We did not ever dwell on not being on the competition floor again. It was always ‘when.’”
On March 5, Trautman vaulted for the first time in 2021 against BYU. Her season debut on balance beam came at the Big 12 Championships, and her first floor routine and all-around performance since her freshman season was at the Tuscaloosa NCAA Regional. Trautman tacked on her fourth career perfect 10 on vault as she helped propel the Sooners to the best national qualifying score in the country.
With Trautman, one of the team’s most vocal leaders, at full health again, the path to Oklahoma’s fifth overall and second-straight NCAA title — the canceled 2020 championships notwithstanding — seems clearer.
Before her heel injuries, Trautman was known to her teammates as someone that led by example, and did an excellent job of it. But when she was forced to watch from the sidelines for the second season in a row, she found other ways to contribute. Instead of solely leading by example, as she was accustomed to, she’s stepped into a role as a vocal leader.
“I changed my mindset and started seeing the good in the situation,” Trautman said. “I was going to be able to cheer on my teammates for them to do their best, and I was working as hard as I can… and to take on a more vocal aspect because I really couldn’t do it physically.”
Without the ability to physically help the team in practice and competition, Trautman improved in her new role. Despite her increased capacity in that facet of leadership, it was clear to former OU star and current graduate-assistant coach Maggie Nichols that Trautman was still leading by example.
“People really watch her in and outside of the gym,” Nichols said. “She really shows by example and she always has a good attitude and is always giving 100 percent. She's everyone's go to. Everyone just feels comfortable going to (her) for anything that they need.”
Perhaps the biggest key to Trautman’s leadership is her seemingly unshakable positive attitude, which Lisa fostered in her at a young age. Despite the initial shock of learning she was hurt again, Trautman didn’t waver in her poise.
“She's a mindset person, whether she's on the competition floor, whether she is working on homework or whether she is dealing with a setback, she just clicks on and off,” Lisa said. “Initially, you don't like to hear that news and you could tell that she was set back by it, but it was pretty much an immediate mindset, that, ‘okay, let's get after recovery already.’”
Since senior Karrie Thomas is out with a mid-ankle sprain, more of the burden to perform will rest on Trautman’s shoulders at NCAA’s. When Trautman was coming back from her injury, Thomas was the teammate she went to for inspiration and motivation.
Thomas aidedher in small ways, whether it was through a word of encouragement if she observed Trautman wasn’t having her best day, or a quote that she read to remind her what she and the team was capable of. Those moments, along with her everyday friendship, made Trautman’s rehab easier.
Trautman chased recovery tirelessly. She worked at all of her rehab and conditioning so she could compete again and was present as a friend and a leader for the rest of her team. Perhaps most impressively, Trautman didn’t grumble about the situation she was in. Now, after overcoming another setback, she’s returned as a force to reckon with as the Sooners zero in on their title aspirations.
“She's never complained about (the injury),” Nichols said. “She’s never said ‘Why me?’ or anything like that… I think that’s why she’s so successful right now and was able to come back from that injury just because she was so positive through her injuries. It really showed her character.”
