Nov 28, 2019
After three years of racing Ironman triathlons as a pro, British athlete Fiona Ford was having the season of her life—she’d finished fourth in Ironman France and felt poised to push through to the next level, all the while building a thriving coaching business.
Everything changed in an instant during a training ride on June 23, 2012, when a car pulled out suddenly in front of her. Thanks to quick thinking and years of bike-handling practice, Fiona was able to avoid colliding with the vehicle—but she still flew off her bike and hit the pavement, sustaining a broken collarbone, sacrum, several vertebrae, and pelvis, among other injuries.
It was a long road back from the hospital room, where doctors told Fiona she’d likely never run a marathon again, to a podium finish in Kona in 2016. In her own excellent book on the topic, Back on Track—and in this week’s episode—she explains how she got there, one difficult step, online search, and therapy visit at a time.
Applying the same diligence to her rehab and recovery as she did to her training and racing allowed her to unlock her true potential, she said. The result transformed not only her career but her view of humanity and the hidden potential in all of us.
Fiona told us:
Resources/links we mention:
You can subscribe to The Injured Athletes Club on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts, and if you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or a review in Apple podcasts. That helps other injured athletes find the show.
To access more resources for injured athletes:
DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.