Amy Purdy, Paralympic snowboarder, hospitalized for week

Amy Purdy
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Paralympic bronze medalist snowboarder Amy Purdy was released from a hospital after a week-long stay due to a serious muscle condition that can severely damage kidneys, according to her social media.

Purdy, a previous kidney transplant recipient from her father, was diagnosed with Rhabdomyolysis after noticing swelling in her arm following a preseason workout of pull-ups.

“Having a friend in the hospital with this condition last year, I rushed to the ER where they confirmed I had it too,” Purdy wrote. “I almost didn’t come to the hospital when I did because my symptoms were so mild, had I of decided to sleep it off l most likely would have had major kidney failure or even gone into shock by the next morning.”

Purdy wrote on Monday that she had been released from the hospital and would focus on healing.

“The recovery on this is supposed to take some time since the muscle fibers in both upper arms were damaged,” she wrote. “But all of this is minor compared to what it could have been!”

Purdy, 36, survived bacterial meningitis in 1999 but lost both her legs and later needed a kidney from her father at age 20.

Purdy is an innovator. She built her own snowboard and is seen as instrumental in getting her sport into the Paralympic program beginning in 2014.

A model, she has been in a Madonna music video, a Super Bowl commercial, ESPN the Magazine’s Body Issue and competed on “The Amazing Race” in 2012.

VIDEO: NBC Sports profile of Amy Purdy before Rio 2016

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Hey Friends! I'd like to fill you in on the last few days of my life. I am going on day 4 in the hospital after developing a very serious condition called Rhabdomyolysis. You should google it and read about it, its crazy. It basically can occur when you overwork a muscle group and the muscle begins to breakdown into your blood stream. It can severely damage kidneys pretty quickly and as most of you know I have a kidney transplant which was a big concern. I have been training as I prepare for the snowboard season and 1 day last week I pushed myself too hard. It seemed to happen so innocently, I did a series of Pull-ups and simply pushed too hard to complete the set. My muscles were a bit sore for a day, nothing bad but then I noticed a bit of swelling in my arm and having a friend in the hospital with this condition last year, I rushed to the ER where they confirmed I had it too. It's been a very intense week hooked up to machines supporting my kidney through this process. It's so crazy to be so healthy and to think you are doing good for your body, then to suddenly have a life threatening condition occur. As scary and serious as this has been, I have been very blessed that my Kidney has stayed strong. I'm also lucky I came in when I did, had I of waited a few more hours before going to the ER my situation could have easily been critical. That being said, my numbers are moving in the right direction, it's just going to take some time to recover. I wanted to share this with all of you because for 1, I believe social media should give insight into our lives, and life doesn't always have a pretty filter. Also, I want to inform you about this disorder that can happen to anyone. You have to listen to your body.. when it is telling you to stop.. Stop! My Dr said "we all have a breaking point, and you found yours " . I will share regular updates through my recovery. Thanks for the love and support friends. :)❤️️🙏✨

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Thank you for all your prayers and kind messages! I didn't think I could be more grateful to be alive then I already was but here I am beyond grateful for my life and health. I almost didn't come to the hospital when I did because my symptoms were so mild, had I of decided to sleep it off l most likely would have had major kidney failure or even gone into shock by the next morning. Intuition, knowing my body and knowledge about this condition saved my kidney and my life. The scary part about Rhabdo is there isn't anything the Dr's can do to stop it once it begins and they don't know how bad it will get. They can only support your body with constant IV fluids to try to buffer the effects, but your muscles continue to swell and breakdown and your kidneys are still forced to filter the massive amount of toxins. Luckily my kidney has held up like a champ! Thanks Dad! And my numbers have dropped significantly today which is a good thing. This condition is so scary, please pay attention to your body. If you have overworked your muscles, if you are sore and you can see some swelling even the slightest amount like I had, don't hesitate to go to the ER, it can save your life. I'm so grateful for my husband @dang_ale who's been by my side, cooking meals at home and bringing them to me each day, for my family and all of your love and support! ❤️️🙏✨🙏✨🙏✨🙏✨🙏

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This arm has about had it! And it's been stuck about 10 more times since this photo was taken. 💉A complication I've had while in here is my veins not wanting to give blood. Both IV's refuse to give so they have had to stick this pore arm of mine morning and night and sometimes multiple times before they get a vein. But I'm going to be honest…. I have been through worse in my life!!! So this… I don't like, I dread actually but I can handle. By the way the necklace I am wearing is a roman coin representing "Courage" I just so happened to be wearing it when I entered. It's funny how a symbol like this can remind you of what you're made of. It's easy to get caught up in the pain and fear of a situation, but if you remove yourself for a moment and step back you realize …. WAIT A SECOND! I AM MADE OF MUCH MORE THEN THIS! PUT YOUR BIG GIRL PANTIES ON AND HANDLE IT!!!!!Thank you @traceenicholsjewelry for reminding me what I'm made of! #tnjroman #courage ✨✨✨

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Look who is out of the hospital! The Dr's and nurses were amazing but I couldn't be happier to get the IV's out and head home! What a crazy experience all this has been. I was so strong up until last Saturday, now I can barely move my arms without fatigue. Last week was supposed to be the first week of on snow training leading into the 2018 Olympic/Paralympic Games, so while my teammates and competitors are neck deep in training, I'm going to be neck deep in healing. The recovery on this is supposed to take some time since the muscle fibers in both upper arms were damaged. But all of this is minor compared to what it could have been! My journey to the next Games may have taken a bit of a step back but sometimes that's what you need for a major comeback! I'm anxious to move on to this recovery stage and also rethink my approach to fitness, health and wellness. There is no need to injure ourselves getting stronger, I'm determined to being healthier then ever but by taking a more gentle path and to be honest, I hated pull-ups anyways! . Thank you to everyone for your ❤️ and support and thank you to @coppermtn for these gorgeous flowers! 🌺 #headedhome #rhabdosucks #gratitude #roadtorecovery ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

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French Open: Novak Djokovic rolls to start Grand Slam record quest

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Novak Djokovic began his quest for a record-breaking 23rd men’s Grand Slam singles title by beating 114th-ranked American Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (1) in the French Open first round on Monday.

Djokovic, seeded third, next gets 83rd-ranked Hungarian Marton Fucsovics. Djokovic could meet top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals. They are the favorites in the absence of 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal, whom Djokovic tied for the overall men’s Slam titles record with his 10th Australian Open crown in January.

Earlier Monday, Sloane Stephens looked sharp in her opening match with a 6-0, 6-4 win over two-time major finalist Karolina Pliskova.

While Stephens’ only Grand Slam title came at the 2017 U.S. Open, she’s also had sustained success at Roland Garros, finishing as a runner-up to Simona Halep in 2018 and reaching two quarterfinals on the red clay in Paris — including last year.

“This is my favorite court in the world, so I’m super happy to be back,” Stephens told the crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier. “To start a Slam on your favorite court, your favorite surface, is always incredible.”

She helped American women go 4-0 through the first few hours of play on Day 2 of the tournament after a 1-4 start on Sunday, when the only U.S. victory came in a match between two players from the country: Jessica Pegula beat Danielle Collins.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Broadcast Schedule

Madison Keys, the runner-up to Stephens in New York six years ago and a semifinalist at Roland Garros in 2018, beat Kaia Kanepi 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 on Monday to improve her career record in the first round of majors to 35-5.

Keys next plays American qualifier Kayla Day, who eliminated French wild-card entry Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 6-1.

Also, Croatian-born American Bernarda Pera beat former No. 2-ranked Anett Kontaveit 7-6 (6), 6-2.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, a finalist in Paris in 2021, breezed past Czech teenager Linda Fruhvirtova 6-2, 6-2; and 22nd-seeded Donna Vekic beat qualifier Dayana Yastremska 6-2, 7-5.

Stephens was down a break in the second set against Pliskova but then won three straight games to close it out.

Stephens had a 19-16 edge in winners and committed only 10 unforced errors to 31 by Pliskova, who lost in the finals of the U.S. Open in 2016 and Wimbledon in 2021.

“This court is a bit tricky. You have to play on it a lot to understand when the wind is blowing and where it’s coming,” Stephens said. “The more you play on it, the more you understand it. But it’s a very complicated court. But that’s what makes it so amazing.”

Stephens won a small clay-court tournament in Saint Malo, France, at the start of the month and also reached the semifinals of the Morocco Open last week after only playing a total of three matches at bigger clay events in Madrid and Rome.

“Last year, my clay season wasn’t great, but I played amazing at Roland Garros last year,” Stephens said, “and this year, I really wanted to get matches and play a lot and to see where that got me.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Canada wins men’s hockey world title; Latvia wins first medal

IIHF Hockey World Championship
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TAMPERE, Finland — Samuel Blais scored two goals to rally Canada to a 5-2 victory over Germany in the final of the world men’s hockey championship on Sunday.

It’s a record 28th world title for Canada, and its second in three years. Russia has 27 while Germany has never won the trophy.

Blais netted with a backhand 4:51 into the final period for a 3-2 lead for Canada, which was playing in its fourth straight final.

“It feels really good,” Blais said. “We’ve been in Europe for a month and we’ve all waited for that moment to play for the gold medal game. And we’re lucky enough to have won it.”

Lawson Crouse, Tyler Toffoli and Scott Laughton also scored for Canada, Peyton Krebs had two assists and goaltender Samuel Montembeault stopped 21 shots.

Toffoli stretched the lead to 4-2 from the left circle with 8:09 remaining and Laughton made it 5-2 with an empty net goal.

Adam Fantilli became only the second Canadian player after Jonathan Toews to win gold at the world juniors and world championship the same year.

Canada had to come back twice in the final.

John Peterka wristed a shot past Montembeault from the left circle 7:44 into the game. It was the sixth goal for the Buffalo Sabres forward at the tournament.

Blais was fed by Krebs to beat goaltender Mathias Niederberger and tie it 1-1 at 10:47.

Daniel Fischbuch put the Germans ahead again with a one-timer with 6:13 to go in the middle period.

Crouse equalized on a power play with 2:32 remaining in the frame.

It was the first medal for Germany since 1953 when it was second behind Sweden.

The two previously met just once in the final with Canada winning 6-1 in 1930.

LATVIA GETS BRONZE

Defenseman Kristian Rubins scored his second goal 1:22 into overtime to lead Latvia to a 4-3 victory over the United States and earn a bronze medal earlier Sunday.

It’s the first top-three finish for Latvia at the tournament. Its previous best was a seventh place it managed three times.

The U.S. lost in the bronze medal game for the second straight year. The U.S. team was cruising through the tournament with eight straight wins until it was defeated by Germany in the semifinal 4-3 in overtime.

Rubins rallied Latvia with his first with 5:39 to go in the final period to tie the game at 3 to force overtime.

Roberts Bukarts and Janis Jaks also scored for Latvia.

Rocco Grimaldi scored twice for the U.S. in the opening period to negate Latvia’s 1-0 and 2-1 leads.

Matt Coronato had put the U.S. 3-2 ahead 6:19 into the final period.

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