Olympic swimmer severs spine in ATV accident

[Borgholio]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/201 ... ne-severe/

Amy Van Dyken-Rouen, a six-time Olympic gold medalist in swimming, told emergency medical personnel she couldn’t feel her legs or toes after she crashed in an all-terrain vehicle incident in Arizona.

Doctors say Ms. Van Dyken-Rouen, 41, severed her spine but is considered in good condition, The Associated Press reported.

She was tossed over a 5-foot drop-off after her ATV hit a curb, police reported, Bleacher Report said. Her husband, Tom Rouen — a former Denver Broncos punter — said her accident caused her initially to stop breathing.

“She wasn’t breathing. I raised up the back of her neck with my hand, she started gasping for air,” he said, Bleacher Report said.

The Olympian is going to be in intensive care for several days.

Ms. Van Dyken-Rouen in 1996 became the first U.S. female athlete to win four gold medals during a single Olympics. She won two more in 2000.

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Posting because of the unfortunate irony. Someone who was an Olympic champion *repeatedly* and had a very active lifestyle is now in a wheelchair for the rest of her life. That...really sucks. If it were just spinal damage she might be able to recover from that but being completely severed?

[Zixinus]

Car incidents happen to everyone.

As for clean living, being an Olympic athlete isn't all healthy. Putting down your body under tremendous stress in order to win a gold medal isn't something that doesn't leave a stretch. There is a reason why there is an entire medical field devoted to sports injuries.

Still, suddenly being confined to a wheelchair is still pretty shitty.