ESPN Article - Robert Wickens Confirms He Is Paralyzed From The Waist Down
#1
Posted 26 October 2018 - 02:47
#3
Posted 26 October 2018 - 03:14
He got injured doing what he loved to do.
Wish him the best.
#4
Posted 26 October 2018 - 04:31
#5
Posted 26 October 2018 - 04:48
#6
Posted 26 October 2018 - 05:06
Terrible news.
Edit: I'm a little confused after reading his Instagram post. Is there a possibility he can recover?
Edited by goldenboy, 26 October 2018 - 05:08.
#7
Posted 26 October 2018 - 05:37
People here complain about how "ugly" the painted runoffs look at F1 circuits.
Because runoffs aren't just ugly, they affect the sport.
But I don't see why you have to bring this up in this topic about a guy who got paralyzed racing on an oval.
#8
Posted 26 October 2018 - 05:45
There are no words.
#9
Posted 26 October 2018 - 05:47
People here complain about how "ugly" the painted runoffs look at F1 circuits. Meanwhile, we have this driver ending his career is a damn chainlink fence. I'll take longevity over beauty any day. I wish Robert the best in his future endeavors. Hopefully he can find a second wind like Alex Zanardi.
The walls are too low there, otherwise he would be walking now.
#10
Posted 26 October 2018 - 05:58
Like now
#11
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:12
Oh my god..
Terrible news.
Edit: I'm a little confused after reading his Instagram post. Is there a possibility he can recover?
Guess it's possible?
"and I am giving it all I’ve got to spark those nerves in my legs. "
#12
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:18
Robbie is a determined guy though, and I wouldn’t write him off ever returning to a race car. There’s also no-one better to help him through this than his boss, too.
On the bright side, despite the neck injury, he appears to have full use of his arms which is great. It might not be IndyCar, but I guarantee he’ll find a way to race again.
#13
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:20
There's always hope, but even if he recovers, will it be enough ?
We have examples of drivers losing their legs who are still racing. We'll see what Robert can do, but it looks like he is giving everything to fight for it.
#14
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:22
Sad. Very promising racing driver he is (was?), and a real addition to the IndyCar series.
#15
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:29
The walls are too low there,
To who's standard? Yours? They are the same as any of speedway and meet all current regulations.
#16
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:30
#17
Posted 26 October 2018 - 06:32
#18
Posted 26 October 2018 - 07:34
To who's standard? Yours? They are the same as any of speedway and meet all current regulations.
The car quite easily missed it on his flight, making the catch fencing the brutal way of stopping the car. I wonder what caused the injury? The car slamming back on the tarmac? The catch fence pole?
The last ChampCar was notorious for its back injuries and iirc this car is sort of an evolution (?)
#19
Posted 26 October 2018 - 07:46
It sounds like there's still hope he might recover - small movements, quite a hopeful tone in that post. Can't dress that up as anything other than devastating news though.
At least he's still here.
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#20
Posted 26 October 2018 - 07:48
He came into Indycar with a bang and should have won his first race.
And the driver that cheated him out of it was allowed to keep his third.
#21
Posted 26 October 2018 - 08:38
To be fair, its any wonder he survived and still has normal cognitive function! At least for that we should be thankful
"an injury to his spinal cord as well as a thoracic spinal fracture, neck fracture, tibia and fibula fractures to both legs, four broken ribs, a broken right forearm, a broken elbow, fractures in both hands and a pulmonary contusion."
#22
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:05
#23
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:07
https://www.instagra.../p/BpYJKb-HmBj/
Sitting at my work desk with a tear in my eye. Poor guy.
The list of injuries he suffered was lengthy, so the only plus point is that this is the very beginning of his recovery. It is more bad news on top of what we already knew but I hope he makes steady progress towards regaining some use of his legs (entirely non-medically informed wish!).
#24
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:12
**** this. I hate this sport sometimes.
#25
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:20
#26
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:31
Tough to swallow, hope he can recover as well as he can and we did not see last of him on track.
#27
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:32
I really don't know what to say, that is dreadful news and I wish him all the best.
#28
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:34
I'm not a medical professional by any description. Can someone who knows the field say what it means for Wickens to be currently a paraplegic?
Is it permanent, what is the possibility of recovery, what extent of recovery is possible, do we really know anything?
The reality is that the chance to improvements is minimal, full recovery next to impossible.
I write it in this manner because not so long ago I saw a TV program on Dutch TV about a couple that had gone abroad to try to make up a living over there. The man was in a wheelchair.
But to the amazement of the entire family, the man all of a sudden gained back a lot of the feelings within his legs and eventually was able to make some use of his legs again. Which was agains all predictions and expectations.
A lot, maybe even nothing is certain for 100% with regards to health, I have seen other things in live, both because of profession and within private live, of which by now I must rate them as impossible yet I have seen it with my own eyes and witness one of them even nowadays.
Miracles do happen, also regarding health.
But I am afraid that, at least for full recovery, is what Robert needs by now: a miracle.
My apologies to everyone who feels this message to be based too much on personal experiences of which no approval is given.
Edited by Henri Greuter, 26 October 2018 - 09:35.
#29
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:48
Even if Wickens makes a full recovery, it would take a very long time and he would have been out of single-seaters for so long and lost so much ground that full-time comeback at the top level at the peak of your powers would be very hard to accomplish. Perhaps you could look at Kubica as an example - now 7.5 years after his accident he is still trying to come back to F1, and looks like by and large he should by now be fit enough to race. But how competitively? Who knows.
Sad news of course. Wickens could have been one of the main players in IndyCar for a decade given his age. But even if that doesn't materialize, perhaps he could return to racing in some other form after a while and accomplish himself that way. Look at Zanardi.
#30
Posted 26 October 2018 - 09:59
People here complain about how "ugly" the painted runoffs look at F1 circuits. Meanwhile, we have this driver ending his career is a damn chainlink fence. I'll take longevity over beauty any day. I wish Robert the best in his future endeavors. Hopefully he can find a second wind like Alex Zanardi.
Best comment I’ve read on the issue of safety. 👍🏻
#31
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:03
Let's keep this about Wickens, his injury and prospects for recovery.
#32
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:05
#33
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:10
Surly he will be able to drive the car with hand controls? Other drivers have recovered from what seem like career ending injuries in the past.
#34
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:22
Surly he will be able to drive the car with hand controls? Other drivers have recovered from what seem like career ending injuries in the past.
That would at least require full (or very close to full) movement/control of his arms/hands. Impossible to say for now.
#35
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:28
Gutted for Robert, the sport and the fans that we have been robbed of all the success and spectacle that his talent would have provided. I hope that he can come back and race again, wherever that may be.
#36
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:29
I agree. He says:The Instagram post makes it sound like he's trying his best to get his legs working. I don't want to say he's paralyzed because I'm sure he's not going to stop and accept it.
"the reality is I am far away from walking on my own."
and "I am giving it all I’ve got to spark those nerves in my legs."
And seven weeks ago, a medical update said:
"Physicians stress it could take weeks or months for the full effects of the injury to be known." https://spmindycar.c...robert-wickens/
#37
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:30
#38
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:43
It's a powerful message he's sending out, that no matter what has happened you must always keep trying and never give up. We can look to others who have similar injuries and have continued to inspire us all, Martyn Ashton for example, Alex Zanardi and many more.
I hope his continued recovery is exceptional
#39
Posted 26 October 2018 - 10:56
Surprised this isn't on the home page of Autosport.
What a damn shame. I hope he's still able to have the best quality of life as possible.
As much as IndyCar undoubtedly has great racing, having to deal with deaths or devastating injuries like this every few years sure takes the appeal away from it, imo...
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#40
Posted 26 October 2018 - 11:16
Horrible, however reading the injury list, its a miracle he survived.
Wishing him all the best in his recovery.
#41
Posted 26 October 2018 - 12:25
Sad news
#42
Posted 26 October 2018 - 12:33
#43
Posted 26 October 2018 - 12:47
It's a powerful message he's sending out, that no matter what has happened you must always keep trying and never give up. We can look to others who have similar injuries and have continued to inspire us all, Martyn Ashton for example, Alex Zanardi and many more.
I hope his continued recovery is exceptional
Exactly. Nothing to stop him continuing to race, and at a high level. People like Alex Zanardi and Billy Monger have shown how much you can achieve. Even Clay Regazzoni, going back a bit further. I'm sure we haven't seen the last of him disability or not.
#44
Posted 26 October 2018 - 12:53
****. I'd assumed something like this would come out, but it doesn't make it any easier when it does.
#45
Posted 26 October 2018 - 13:45
Same here, can't find proper words to describe my feelings while I was watching it. He had such a promising career ahead of him.
#46
Posted 26 October 2018 - 13:45
Does anyone know if there is any crowdfunding set up for him?
#47
Posted 26 October 2018 - 14:17
I guess most of us suspected this after the update that said "extent of spinal injuries unknown". Never a good sign.
Such a damn shame, such a nice fellow and so young. In some ways lucky to be here but in the dark, lonely hours in the middle of the night he'd be struggling, it's a long, long road for the young man.
#48
Posted 26 October 2018 - 18:49
I saw Nick Fairall crash at Bischofshofen practice in 2015. He also had a spinal cord injury. Such a terrible situation
#49
Posted 26 October 2018 - 19:44
Just a flat out bummer, I can't that any of the newer guys really made me really pull for them, except for Wickens and a little bit for Rossi.
So sorry to hear this, although it's not unexpected after seeing the list of injuries he suffered in that brutal wreck.
Fight on, Wickens.
#50
Posted 26 October 2018 - 21:24