Imke Glas (born 30 August 1994) is a Dutch

artistic gymnast Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics in which athletes perform short routines on different apparatuses. The sport is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG), which designs the Code of Points and regulates ...

Personal life

Glas was born on 30 August 1994 in Broek op Langedijk,

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. She has two siblings.

Gymnastics career

Glas began gymnastics at the age of three when her parents took her to a local gym, BSV / ODIS. Glas was one of the most promising junior elite gymnasts on the Dutch Junior National Team and was a contender to compete at the 2008 European Junior Gymnastic Championships. However, on 26 October 2007 she was severely injured in an accident on vault. While in training, Glas was performing a round-off half-on, a variation of the Yurchenko type vault, when her hands missed the vault table and she fell on her head. She severely damaged her sixth and seventh

cervical vertebrae In tetrapods, cervical vertebrae (singular: vertebra) are the vertebrae of the neck, immediately below the skull. Truncal vertebrae (divided into thoracic and lumbar vertebrae in mammals) lie caudal (toward the tail) of cervical vertebrae. In ...

, warranting extensive surgery in which

neurosurgeons Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and peri ...

took a piece of her hip bone and placed it in her neck for stabilization. Glas and her family were told that she would never walk again, but she made a full recovery.The first steps of Imke Glas- De Stentor

References

External links

Imke Glas Official Website Imke Glas: Health Updates Imke Glas Documentary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glas, Imke 1994 births Living people Dutch female artistic gymnasts People from Langedijk Sportspeople from North Holland