• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Olympic ice hockey star paralysed from chest down after incident during game

Home> News> Sport

Published 20:08 1 Dec 2023 GMT

Olympic ice hockey star paralysed from chest down after incident during game

The two-time bronze medallist collided with the goalpost in a freak accident last Friday

Bec Oakes

Bec Oakes

An Olympic ice hockey star's sporting career has come to a devastating end after an accident during a game left her paralysed from the chest down.

Finnish hockey star and two-time Olympic bronze medalist Sanni Hakala was playing with HV71 in a Swedish Women's Hockey League game against Djurgårdens when the incident occurred.

Hakala, who serves as her team captain, suffered a severe neck injury when she collided head-first into the goalpost during the game last Friday (24 November).

Advert

The 26-year-old was stretchered off the ice and taken to University Hospital in Linköping, where she underwent surgery, the team announced.

She is now paralysed from the chest down and has reduced function in her arms and hands.

Sanni Hakala at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Taking to Instagram, Hakala shared how she's feeling following the freak accident.

“It is still hard to understand what has happened, that the crash into the goal post was as serious as it was, that the consequences have become so big," she said.

Advert

“Not only that I am forced to stop playing hockey, something that has been a big part of my life for many years, but that I may be forced to sit in a wheelchair for the rest of my life.

“The injury I sustained last Friday after colliding with the goal post has left me paralysed from the chest down, with reduced function in my arms and hands. That’s the reality I’m trying to land in."

Hakala is paralysed from the chest down and has reduced function in her arms following the freak accident.
Instagram/@sanniihakala

Hakala worked her way through the ranks of Finland hockey and made her international debut back in 2012 as part of her country's Under-18 team.

She represented Finland at the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang in 2018 and Beijing in 2022, bringing home bronze medals at both and also won two silver medals and one bronze across World Championship events in 2017, 2019 and 2021.

Advert

Now, she faces a 'long period of rehabilitation,' according to her club, which she has been a part of for eight seasons.

“I understand that I am now facing a long and hard fight with my body and the toughest game of my life," Hakala continued in her Instagram update.

“Now I need to focus all my energy on the rehabilitation so that I can recover as well as possible.

"Therefore, me and HV71 will not leave further comments regarding my injury or situation and I ask you all to show consideration and respect for me and my family.

"This situation obviously sucks, but I’m not scared to take it on. I don’t know what I’m going to do next, but I know it will be f**king awesome.”

Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@sanniihakala/Sarah Stier/Getty

Topics: News, Sport, Winter Olympics

Bec Oakes
Bec Oakes

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

a minute ago
an hour ago
2 hours ago
  • a minute ago

    Collector buys 100-year-old Coca Cola bottle for £55 then discovers its staggering true worth

    What a bargain that is

    News
  • an hour ago

    Diddy trial psychologist explains why it can take multiple attempts for victims to leave abusive relationships

    Clinical psychologist Dr Dawn Hughes told the court that victims often have an 'intense psychological bond' with their abuser

    News
  • an hour ago

    NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover begins new search for life in Red Planet's 'crocodile' region

    Could the Mars rover unearth something more than dusty old rocks?

    News
  • 2 hours ago

    Donald Trump lashes out at 'idiot' reporter who pressed him about $400 million gift from Qatar

    The president certainly wasn't happy with the question

    News
  • Convicted rapist Steven van de Velde booed loudly during Olympic defeat
  • Former athlete explains what causes Olympians to look for so much sex during games
  • Reason there is so much sex between athletes during Olympic games
  • Olympic diver leaves viewers not knowing where to look over his outfit at games