After suffering a fractured jaw, fractured left arm, ruptured spleen, stable pelvic fracture, rib fractures and a collapsed left lung in a backcountry snowboarding accident, Canada’s Mark McMorris made a triumphant return to World Cup snowboard Big Air on Saturday. The victory is a step toward qualifying for the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
The CBC spoke with Mark about his victory and what it means for his Olympic bid:
“I’m doing really good, very happy to get a win under my belt back after that injury. I’m feeling on top of the world. Some days it felt like I would return to snowboarding and other days it wouldn’t. I just feel really, really blessed to even have a chance to snowboard at this level again … the fact that I was given a second chance is definitely the icing on the cake. I just want to keep it up, keep landing on podiums and hopefully just take it into Korea and grab a few medals there for Canada and for myself. I would be thrilled to kill it [in Pyeongchang].”
…I might be rooting for the American snowboard squad in Pyeongchang but everyone loves a comeback story and Mark McMorris’s doesn’t get much more dramatic. If you know someone that is getting over an injury maybe share this with them to encourage PT and a positive attitude.