Alicia Sacramone: Injured Gymnast Sets US Record for Most Career World Medals

Alicia Sacramone has made more than a few headlines of late.

She starred in the ESPN Body Issue and was ready to compete in World Championships in Tokyo with the rest of the American team.

But injury struck the 23-year-old last week in training when she tore her Achilles tendon. Boyfriend Brady Quinn, the Denver Broncos apparent third-string quarterback, furthered her name in the news by flying out to be with her.

Now she's back in the news for setting a US record. Despite being injured, she was still a member of the squad and earned her tenth career world medal.

She was previously tied with former Olympic teammates Nastia Liukin and Shannon Miller, but now owns the record all by herself.

Her achievements include four gold medals, four silver medals and two bronze medals. Of those 10, four are team achievements while the rest are attributed to her individual accomplishments.

The US team won gold in her absence by defeating the defending champion Russians by four points.

Both Sacramone and her teammates expressed how exciting this moment is for her and the team.

The Boston Globe quotes Alexandra Raisman, the only global veteran left on the squad in Sacramone's absence and de facto leader, as saying:

"

Alicia is here with us in spirit, and we all knew that her heart was here ... We did it for her. She deserved the gold medal and we are really happy that we got it for her.

"

Sacramone responded via Twitter by saying:

The US women still have chances to acquire medals in the all-around competition.

It will be some time before Sacramone is back on the balance beam or in competition at all.

There is even the possibility of her retiring from competition, something she has already tried once.

If that is the case, she'll retire as the most decorated US gymnast at the World Championships.