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Jossi Wells confident he'll be back on the slopes
Kiwi Winter Olympian Jossi Wells has suffered a potentially career ending injury in a scary free-skiing crash in Australia.
The 24-year-old has broken his neck during a big air event at the Resort of Thredbo.
Initially fearing the worst, he's now recuperating in Wanaka.
"Unfortunately I came up about a metre short on the jump, so I hit the flat part right before the landing, I felt pins and needles through my legs and feet, started to kind of freak out a little bit as I was sliding down the landing I was wiggling my toes like crazy making sure I still had feeling in them," said Wells.
The One Hit Wonder Big Air jump at Thredbo is a 30 metre monster where it all went so badly wrong.
"Ended up landing on my back and neck simultaneously I sustained a fracture in the C7 vertebrae of my lower neck, and I've got some other, a little bit of a step in my C5 and 6 so yeah, it's not great."
The neck brace he has to wear forcing the removal of his trademark beard, his dad Bruce Wells just relieved that Jossi didn't suffer a more serious outcome.
"The alternative is really unthinkable really, don't particularly want to go there too much, not just as a coach but as a father, it looks like he's dodged a rather large bullet."
Specialist advice next week will determine Wells Free-Skiing future, while dad is cautions his concerns are not shared by Jossi.
Source: http://tvnz.co.nz/
The 24-year-old has broken his neck during a big air event at the Resort of Thredbo.
Initially fearing the worst, he's now recuperating in Wanaka.
"Unfortunately I came up about a metre short on the jump, so I hit the flat part right before the landing, I felt pins and needles through my legs and feet, started to kind of freak out a little bit as I was sliding down the landing I was wiggling my toes like crazy making sure I still had feeling in them," said Wells.
The One Hit Wonder Big Air jump at Thredbo is a 30 metre monster where it all went so badly wrong.
"Ended up landing on my back and neck simultaneously I sustained a fracture in the C7 vertebrae of my lower neck, and I've got some other, a little bit of a step in my C5 and 6 so yeah, it's not great."
The neck brace he has to wear forcing the removal of his trademark beard, his dad Bruce Wells just relieved that Jossi didn't suffer a more serious outcome.
"The alternative is really unthinkable really, don't particularly want to go there too much, not just as a coach but as a father, it looks like he's dodged a rather large bullet."
Specialist advice next week will determine Wells Free-Skiing future, while dad is cautions his concerns are not shared by Jossi.
Source: http://tvnz.co.nz/
