An Olympic Liver

A few years ago, Aviva tried to teach me to ski in New Jersey. I know this sounds oxymoronic as Jersey is not known for its snow-top mountains. Mountain Creek is as flat as a runway with mountains more fit for sledding than skiing. And yet, this didn’t really help me avoid falling flat on my face dozens of times. Aviva blames my legs, which are bow-legged and not properly designed for the pizza wheel stop. Whatever my handicap may have been, it ultimately led to a concussion. After defeating the bunny slope and finally coming down the green diamond after many falls and crashes, we decided to have lunch and relax. I subsequently threw up, got a horrible headache, and then passed out on the bench. Needless to say, we don’t go skiing anymore.

This ill-fated attempt at a winter sport only magnified my respect for the Olympic athletes. Their grace, strength, and patriotism is rarely matched in sports. Perhaps the most impressive of these athletes is Chris Klug, who in 2002 became the first transplant patient to win an Olympic Medal. Klug captured a bronze medal in the snowboarding event, the parallel giant slalom. His victory was a great PR opportunity for transplant awareness and Chris continues to speak about his experiences through his foundation, The Chris Klug Foundation.

Chris Klug makes us all look lazy. In 2000 he had his transplant after suffering for PSC for nine years. Four days later he was out of the hospital and within a week he was back riding on a stationary bike. Five months post-transplant and I still get tired walking up the three flights of stairs to my apartment. To avoid the risk of abdominal hernia, Chris avoided abdominal exercise for a whole month. Yesterday, I tried to do a sit-up, got tired, and ate a candy bar instead. Two months post-upgrade, Chris was back on the mountain, skiing and snowboarding. A mere four months after surgery, Chris was back on the snowboarding circuit, competing regularly. And the rest, as they say, is all history.