During the quarterfinals men’s snowboard cross on Thursday, Markus Schairer broke his fifth cervical vertebra while he was navigating the course.
In an attempt to land one of his last couple of jumps, Schairer fell on his back, hitting his head on the ground hard. Though he stayed on the ground for a few moments, he was about to rise to his feet, before he was rushed to the hospital.
Yahoo! Sports reports that Schairer was officially diagnosed with a fracture of his fifth vertebra (C5). However, he is miraculously in stable condition with no risk of further injuries. Given how sensitive the fifth cervical vertebra is (let alone a spinal injury in general), Schairer is exceptionally fortunate to have evaded any further complications. Seeing as any significant trauma at or above the fifth cervical vertebra can inhibit a patient’s ability to breathe, according to Healthline.
Böser Sturz von Markus #Schairer im #Snowboard Boardercross. Halswirbelbruch, aber Ärzte befürchten keine Folgeschäden #PyeongChang2018 pic.twitter.com/iaptkStpYW
— Lukas Zahrer (@ZaraLuk) February 15, 2018
Although Schairer is in stable condition, The Washington Post reports that Schairer will undergo additional evaluation and treatment in Austria.
However, there’s no doubt that Schairer will be back to training soon, seeing as he’s a veteran Olympic and X Games competitor and he’s no stranger to injuries.
KGW8 News, an affiliate of USA Today, reveals that Schairer broke five ribs at the 2010 X Games. Not to mention, he tore four ligaments and fractured one of his joints at another event in 2013. Plus, he injured his elbow earlier in the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games (and was competing with that same injury today), Yahoo! Sports adds.
While Schairer is undoubtedly strong AF for enduring countless serious injuries, we hope Schairer will receive a favorable prognosis so that he can recover soon.