In 2016, I was on top of the world – and at the top of my sport – having just won Team USA’s first-ever Olympic gold medal as a BMX athlete. I couldn’t wait to start training forthe 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Though the COVID pandemic delayed things a year, I was more than ready to compete in 2021 knowing, that at age 28, it would likely be my last chance to secure another Olympic medal. I entered the second day of the competition as the number one seed, so close to my dream. Then everything fell apart.

I don’t remember the accident. And I don’t remember much about the days after as I drifted in and out of consciousness. I suffered multiple injuries to my brain and my body. I even stopped breathing briefly on the track, and emergency crews had to open an airway. The only good news was that I wasn’t paralyzed.

I do remember ending up at University of Utah Hospital a week later and subsequently its Craig H. Neilsen Rehabilitation Hospital, both part of the Team USA partner network of hospital facilities. I had complete faith in the Team USA medical network, so when they said I would go to the University Hospital, I trusted I was getting the best possible care– and they didn’t let me down.

The expertise of my entire team, combined with the hospital’s state-of-the-art resources, such as the innovative Assistive Technology Center, where patients learn how to modify existing technology to suit their individual needs, is the reason I was able to make a full recovery. Most medical professionals who see my brain scans and MRIs from those early days are amazed at where I am today – but my doctors and rehab therapists at University of Utah Health were committed to getting me back on a bike – which I did in 2022. And though my competition days are behind me, my future has never felt brighter.

I am able to share my story with you today because of the extraordinary level of care I received at the University Hospital. That’s why I want to tell you about U of U Hospitals and Clinics’ Here For You Fund. This fund is unique because it lets you give directly where you will make the most impact. Whether it’s building the future of medicine through innovative new spaces and equipment, helping patients, addressing emerging community health needs, or supporting their care teams as they care for others, you’ll support the top priorities and rapidly changing needs of the hospital that matter most to you.

It takes the whole community to maintain a health care system of this caliber. U of U Hospitals and Clinics depend on the generosity of families like yours and mine to keep providing the best health care and most talented medical professionals—available at a moment’s notice and just miles away.

Your participation matters most, so your gift of any size is valued. To continue offering world-class health care in our community, please consider a monthly gift to our Here For You Fund.

Passionate supporters like you help U of U Hospitals and Clinics take care of you and your family. You may not always be thinking about the hospital, but when it comes to health care for you, your family, and our community, they are thinking about you – and will be here for you when you need them most. I will be forever grateful they were there for me.