Surgery puts McCue’s figure skating career on hold

Just a few months ago local figure skater Tessa McCue was on the verge of new heights. She had made the big move in the junior skating ranks, having successfully completed a triple axle. That jump is used as a measuring stick for a skater’s growth.

But now McCue is at a crossroads in her young career. The 16-year-old Hampden native underwent surgery on her right knee at a Boston hospital last Thursday.

McCue’s knee problem stems from a recurrence of Osgood-Schlatter’s disease which usually strikes young girls when they are 9 or 10. It is a condition where the skeleton grows faster than the person’s tendons.

Debbie McCue, Tessa’s mother, said that the skater grew six inches when she was 12 and believes the growth may have aggravated an already existing condition.

A piece of bone had become unattached and was sitting on top of her kneecap. Boston Red Sox team doctor, Dr. Arthur Pappas, performed the surgery to remove the bone.

McCue is coached by Barbara Kossowska of the New England Skating Center at Marlboro, Mass. Kossowska is the former coach of Poland’s Olympic figure skating team.

Kossowska said she decided that McCue should stop skating and have the surgery.

“I am glad I took the decision. She’s a very brave girl. She wanted to continue to do the [triple axle] even though she was in so much pain,” Kossowska said.

McCue has been competing successfully in New England junior tournaments. Kossowska said Dr. Pappas told them that following rehabilitation, the young skater should be back to where she left off.

And from there it’s hard to predict just where McCue will land. Her ability to do the triple axle separates her from many junior skaters who never progress past the double.

“You never know,” Kossowska said. “She is still very young. It is possible that someday she will be a national skater. If that doesn’t work she can be a very good coach. She can do anything. Skating requires such discipline and she has that.”

Clifford named Knicks’ assistant

Steve Clifford says he always knew he wanted to coach basketball and he has done just that for most of his adult life. Now he is coaching at the highest level of basketball in the world – the NBA. Clifford was recently hired as an assistant coach with the New York Knicks.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity. Just for the experience and in terms of professional growth. Jeff Van Gundy is one of the top coaches in the world. I’m learning a lot not only of the NBA game but all aspects of coaching,” Clifford said.

Clifford was born in Island Falls. He said he has family living in the Mattawamkeag and Lincoln area. His brother Danny is the boys basketball coach at Ellsworth High School. His mother and father, Gerry and Teresa, are now retired and living in Brewer.

His family moved to Vermont when he was young where his father was a successful high school coach.

“I always knew I would coach. I knew I wanted to coach at a young age,” Clifford said.

He played basketball at UMaine-Farmington for four years before graduating in 1983. He began his coaching career at Woodland High School in 1984.

“I coached there in 1984 and 1985 and then I worked for Bob Brown at St. Anselm College,” Clifford said.

Clifford also worked as an assistant coach at East Carolina University and was head coach at Adelphi University in Garden City, N.Y., for four years before joining the Knicks in 2000.

“I was the scout last season and then one of the assistants, Kevin O’Neal, went to Detroit with Rick Carlisle. Really for me it was a lucky break,” Clifford said.

And Clifford said he doesn’t expect problems in dealing the egos and demands of professional players when training camp opens on Oct. 2.

“I don’t care what level you’re an assistant, how effective you can be is largely determined by the environment created by the head coach,” Clifford said. “Jeff is so respected here, as are the two other assistants.”

Don Perryman’s Local Spotlight column is published each Wednesday. He can be reached at 990-8045, 1-800-310-8600 or by email at dperryman@bangordailynews.net