To listen to it, he did not hesitate. Victim of a cardiac arrest in the middle of a game in January, NFL player Damar Hamlin returned to training on Tuesday. If he starts from afar, the 25-year-old aims to play again in competition with his Buffalo Bills team and prove “that we can continue to do what we love” rather than being afraid, as he said it at a press conference organized after its first session.
“What I went through changed my life, but that’s not the end of my story, I have every intention of playing in the NFL again,” he continued. All my life, I have defied the odds and I intend to continue. »
On January 2, during a regular season game between his team and Cincinnati, Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest following a heavy tackle by an opponent. He had received this shock exactly in the wrong place and during the fraction of a second when the heart is most vulnerable, experts explained later.
After remaining in critical condition for several days, the player regained consciousness and left the hospital on January 11. “He’s back with a good spirit and he wants to return to competition,” said Bills general manager Brandon Beane. He saw a final specialist on Friday and all the specialists he saw cleared him to return to training, like any other player returning from injury. »
“I died live on TV”
Hamlin, who made his NFL debut in 2021, is aware that what he experienced, watched by tens of millions of viewers, made an impression. “I died live on TV in front of the whole planet (…) But being alive is the greatest gift, he acknowledged. I love this sport, I want to prove to myself and no one else that I can come back. »
His first training was limited to ground exercises and bodybuilding: “Physically, I’m starting from zero,” he admitted. His return was hailed by Bills quarterback Josh Allen, among others: “We are super happy to see him back with us. He’s a hell of a football player, ”he recalled.
The Buffalo Bills who, after his cardiac arrest added a 3, Hamlin’s number, to their jerseys, passed the first round of the play-offs in his absence, before finding Cincinnati in the next round and being eliminated (27 -10). The 2023 NFL Championship season kicks off on September 7.