Injured American ski jumper receives High Fives grant
October 7, 2015 /
The High Fives Foundation is awarding 26-year-old Nick Fairall of Andover, N.H., an Empowerment Grant totaling $1,920 to bring the Olympic ski jumper to the CR Johnson Healing Center for 32 sessions of specialized rehabilitative treatments.
On Jan. 5, 2015, Fairall was competing in the ski jumping World Cup in Bischofshofen, Austria, when he sustained a severe injury. During qualifications, Fairall had a great jump that would have qualified him for the round. However, due to the wet snow conditions, his skis stuck in the snow immediately upon landing. As a result, his center of gravity and balance were thrown forward — the impact folded Fairall in half. Medical personnel arrived immediately to his aid and rushed him to the local hospital where he underwent emergency spinal surgery within two hours of the crash.
