gerard
03-09-2006, 10:34 PM
It was a glorious moment for Gael Yonnet as he finished his first run at last weekend's USA Snowboarding Association regional competition at Snowbird.
Taking part had been an achievement for the athletic 31-year-old - the only entry in his age group.
But somehow amid the jumps and tricks of his second slopestyle run, Yonnet lost control. The next thing he knew, paramedics were loading him into a medical helicopter. A fourth-year medical student at the University of Utah, Yonnet quickly realized his situation was grim.
"I knew I didn't feel anything below my belly button," said Yonnet, who is planning a career in neurology. "I knew the injury was to my spinal cord."
Surgeons confirmed what Yonnet suspected: With his spinal cord severed, he is paralyzed from the waist down. Now Yonnet's classmates, friends, and family are rallying around him in the ward he once did rounds in.
The past few days have been emotional peaks and valleys for Yonnet, a French citizen who has been living with host family Fred and Shirley Langeland of Salt Lake City while attending school.
Yonnet said he loves to be alone in the mountains. As the reality of his condition and the assistance he might need in the future sunk in Sunday, he despaired.
"The first day, I thought if that's how I'm going to live, maybe I want to die," Yonnet said.
But as friends have shown support, Yonnet said he is now thinking more about what might lie ahead: finishing school, a residency, and competing again.
His brother, David Yonnet, learned of the accident on Sunday. "And of course, I was crushed, I was paralyzed myself."
He arrived from France late Wednesday and went right to the hospital to be with Gael, whom he hadn't seen for three or four years.
David Renner, a neurologist at the U. and a friend and mentor to Yonnet, got an emergency page on the day of the accident. His heart sank when he learned what had happened.
, Renner is focused on ensuring Yonnet can continue his studies and reach his goal of becoming a physician.
Yonnet said he will continue to seek a residency in the U.S. for next year. "I have thought a lot about it," Yonnet said, "and it will be worked out. The route will be a little different, but the end results will http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifAdvertisementdocument.writeln(AAMB6); http://media.fastclick.net/w/get.media?sid=14628&m=6&tp=8&d=s&c=1 (http://media.fastclick.net/w/click.here?sid=14628&m=6&c=1)http://209.210.181.2/IMPCNT/ccid=9115/area=slt.LOCAL.positionY/adsize=300x250/keyword=/site=/acc_random=56508740/pageid=56508740?? http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifbe unchanged."
The past days in the hospital have taught him much about his chosen profession.
"In the last three days, I've learned a lot about pain, and how patients should be treated," Yonnet said.
Close friend and classmate Kevin Hughes said he has watched Yonnet's determination in school over the years.
"He is from a humble background in France and has accomplished something difficult for even English speakers to do," said Hughes.
He adds: "My hope would be that people will read this and give whatever they could so he can fulfill his dreams because he's almost at the finish. It's almost like climbing a mountain and then looking up and seeing another one to climb."
Fred Langeland, an obstetrician, said he and his wife consider Yonnet to be one of their own. Yonnet came to study in the U.S. after meeting Langeland's son as he was serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in France.
"He's a very outgoing, charismatic young man who is driven," said Langeland of Yonnet. "He is a type A personality, and that's what got him into medical school. He fixed on a goal and went after it."
Langeland had the task of calling Yonnet's mother and father in France to tell them what had happened. Yonnet's brother arrived in Salt Lake City late Wednesday night.
Medical student Elizabeth Davis said news of the accident has greatly affected his classmates.
She was a co-president for their class freshman year, and described Yonnet as an outgoing student known for buzzing around campus on a scooter.
"It's really affected all of us, because we know the implications that can have on someone's life," she said. "It's so different when it's someone that you know."
Taking part had been an achievement for the athletic 31-year-old - the only entry in his age group.
But somehow amid the jumps and tricks of his second slopestyle run, Yonnet lost control. The next thing he knew, paramedics were loading him into a medical helicopter. A fourth-year medical student at the University of Utah, Yonnet quickly realized his situation was grim.
"I knew I didn't feel anything below my belly button," said Yonnet, who is planning a career in neurology. "I knew the injury was to my spinal cord."
Surgeons confirmed what Yonnet suspected: With his spinal cord severed, he is paralyzed from the waist down. Now Yonnet's classmates, friends, and family are rallying around him in the ward he once did rounds in.
The past few days have been emotional peaks and valleys for Yonnet, a French citizen who has been living with host family Fred and Shirley Langeland of Salt Lake City while attending school.
Yonnet said he loves to be alone in the mountains. As the reality of his condition and the assistance he might need in the future sunk in Sunday, he despaired.
"The first day, I thought if that's how I'm going to live, maybe I want to die," Yonnet said.
But as friends have shown support, Yonnet said he is now thinking more about what might lie ahead: finishing school, a residency, and competing again.
His brother, David Yonnet, learned of the accident on Sunday. "And of course, I was crushed, I was paralyzed myself."
He arrived from France late Wednesday and went right to the hospital to be with Gael, whom he hadn't seen for three or four years.
David Renner, a neurologist at the U. and a friend and mentor to Yonnet, got an emergency page on the day of the accident. His heart sank when he learned what had happened.
, Renner is focused on ensuring Yonnet can continue his studies and reach his goal of becoming a physician.
Yonnet said he will continue to seek a residency in the U.S. for next year. "I have thought a lot about it," Yonnet said, "and it will be worked out. The route will be a little different, but the end results will http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifAdvertisementdocument.writeln(AAMB6); http://media.fastclick.net/w/get.media?sid=14628&m=6&tp=8&d=s&c=1 (http://media.fastclick.net/w/click.here?sid=14628&m=6&c=1)http://209.210.181.2/IMPCNT/ccid=9115/area=slt.LOCAL.positionY/adsize=300x250/keyword=/site=/acc_random=56508740/pageid=56508740?? http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifbe unchanged."
The past days in the hospital have taught him much about his chosen profession.
"In the last three days, I've learned a lot about pain, and how patients should be treated," Yonnet said.
Close friend and classmate Kevin Hughes said he has watched Yonnet's determination in school over the years.
"He is from a humble background in France and has accomplished something difficult for even English speakers to do," said Hughes.
He adds: "My hope would be that people will read this and give whatever they could so he can fulfill his dreams because he's almost at the finish. It's almost like climbing a mountain and then looking up and seeing another one to climb."
Fred Langeland, an obstetrician, said he and his wife consider Yonnet to be one of their own. Yonnet came to study in the U.S. after meeting Langeland's son as he was serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in France.
"He's a very outgoing, charismatic young man who is driven," said Langeland of Yonnet. "He is a type A personality, and that's what got him into medical school. He fixed on a goal and went after it."
Langeland had the task of calling Yonnet's mother and father in France to tell them what had happened. Yonnet's brother arrived in Salt Lake City late Wednesday night.
Medical student Elizabeth Davis said news of the accident has greatly affected his classmates.
She was a co-president for their class freshman year, and described Yonnet as an outgoing student known for buzzing around campus on a scooter.
"It's really affected all of us, because we know the implications that can have on someone's life," she said. "It's so different when it's someone that you know."