Olympic and world champion long jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall suffered a concussion in a head-on car collision while heading to a training session last week.
Davis-Woodhall revealed her injuries in a call with reporters on Wednesday and posted video of the crash, taken from a dashcam in her car, on social media.
In the video, a car turning right out of a parking lot veers into Davis-Woodhall’s lane and hits her car almost head-on, crumpling the front of both cars and deploying the airbags.
The 27-year-old American guessed that both cars were going about 20 mph.
“I’m lucky and blessed to be alive right now, and no life-threatening injuries,” Davis-Woodhall said, showing off bruises on her arms. “I don’t know where my head’s at now. Just taking it day by day.”
Davis-Woodhall said her status is uncertain for next week’s Ultimate World Championships, where athletes will compete for $150,000 first prizes.
She said she was rounding into top form before the crash but hasn’t practiced since.
“I’m physically OK,” she said. ”Mentally, something’s going on in there. It’s really unfortunate timing.”
Davis-Woodhall was planning to return next week to Budapest, Hungary - the place where she finished second at the 2023 world championships. Coming up short stoked a fire that led her to win the Olympics the next year, then worlds in Tokyo in 2025.
Now, her plans are on hold.
“I went through something unfortunate,” she said. “Now I’m trying to figure out what I can do to get myself back on the horse.”
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