Former Olympic swimmer Amy Van Dyken Rouen is recovering in a hospital after she severed her spine in an all-terrain vehicle accident near Phoenix on Friday. A police report said that the ATV the six-time gold medalist was driving smashed into a curb, sending the decorated athlete down a five- to seven-foot embankment. She was not wearing a helmet and couldn't move her legs after the crash.
Her husband, former NFL punter Tom Rouen, detailed the scary scene immediately following the accident. "She wasn't breathing," he said. "I raised up the back of her neck with my hand, she started gasping for air."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Harriet Tubman made a general 161 years after raidSpeed Read She was the first woman to oversee an American military action during a time of war
-
Chappell Roan is a new kind of boundary-setting celebrityIn the Spotlight She's calling out fans and the media for invasive behavior
-
Saudi crown prince slams Israeli 'genocide' in GazaSpeed Read Mohammed bin Salman has condemned Israel’s actions
-
Quincy Jones, music icon, is dead at 91Speed Read The legendary producer is perhaps best known as the architect behind Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'
-
OJ Simpson, star athlete tried for murder, dead at 76Speed Read The former football hero and murder suspect lost his battle with cancer
-
Momofuku's 'Chili Crunch' trademark uproarSpeed Read The company's attempt to own the sole rights has prompted backlash
-
Kevin Hart awarded Mark Twain PrizeSpeed Read He is the 25th recipient of the prestigious comedy prize
-
Is Downton Abbey set to return for a final film?Speed Read Imelda Staunton reveals that a third movie may be in the pipeline
-
'Oppenheimer' sweeps Oscars with 7 winsspeed read The film won best picture, best director (Christopher Nolan) and best actor (Cillian Murphy)
-
'Rust' armorer convicted of manslaughterspeed read The film's cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed by actor Alec Baldwin during rehearsal
-
The Beatles are getting 4 intersecting biopicsSpeed Read Director Sam Mendes is making four separate movies, each told from the perspective of one band member
