A terrifying video shows the moment a dad’s kneecaps fell into his thighs after he ruptured both tendons while competing in a Strongman final.
Dan Jones had competed in a Strongman competition in Southport on September 1 and reached the final, which involved carrying 80kg 20m to the finish line.
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Shocking footage shows Dan running, seconds from the finish line, before collapsing in a heap.
This is when he ruptured both patellar tendons, causing his kneecaps to shoot out into his quadriceps.
The 29-year-old senior IT analyst was rushed to Leighton Hospital in Crewe, Cheshire, where he was given painkillers before undergoing a grueling five-hour operation to fuse his tendons.
The dad-of-one, who has been in hospital for three weeks and has to learn how to walk again, hopes to be discharged before his 30th birthday next month.
The patellar tendon joins the thigh muscle to the shin bone, helping to straighten the knee for movements such as walking and going up and down stairs.
While it is uncertain whether 5ft 11in Dan will be able to compete again, he says his injuries have not stopped him from taking part in future Strongman competitions if he is able.
Dan, from Weaverham in Northwich, Cheshire, said: “I was going into the last event in second place.
“If I had won this event there was a chance I would have won my class and if I had come second I would have come second overall out of 16 people.
“The guy I was racing with was in first place at the time so I had to beat him so I was going as fast as I could.
“It was a freak accident, we’re still not 100 per cent sure how it happened.
“After slowing down the video of the doctors and surgeons, it looks like the patellar tendon in my right knee snaps out of nowhere, which causes my leg to fold underneath.
“Then my left knee buckles under me and that tendon snaps when it hits the ground.
“I felt like I was on fire, my kneecaps were on my quads because my tendons were torn.
“The strangest thing I remember is the silence. The whole crowd was cheering everyone and then there was deathly silence and I just lay on the floor.
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“I was very upset, I had a chance to win, we were very close to the end with 10 meters to go in the races.
“I only needed three more seconds of running to finish the event.
“It showed on the video that I was a bit ahead of him when I went down, so I knew if I had finished the event there was a chance I could have won.”
Dan started training to compete in Strongman in January this year and came first in the First Time category at the Manchester Strongman competition in July.
To train, he worked out eight hours a week and ate a 4,500-calorie high-protein, high-carbohydrate diet, which meant he tipped the scales at 214kg when he competed.
I DON’T GIVE THEM UP
During his operation, Dan had an internal splint fitted to both legs to help repair his tendons and attends physiotherapy sessions every day.
He is now documenting his recovery journey on TikTok, posting a daily video update from the hospital every day.
Dan said: “During the operation the doctors said they needed to fuse my tendons and make sure my ligaments below my knee were where they needed to be.
“Then they had to put two stitches in my shin and make an internal splint to help my body fuse the tendon as best it could.
“I was in bed and I couldn’t move my legs, I was worried about everything. [I was thinking’ ‘Will I be able to walk again? How long will it take?’
“The best guess is potentially the stress of the day [caused the injury] as there is no real reason why it happened because there were no signs it was just a freak accident.
“The doctor said it was very rare to see two patellar tendons go at the same time.”
My biggest goal is to be a dad and be able to chase my daughter and play with her
Dan Jones
Once Dan is able to stand on his own and use the toilet without assistance, he will be discharged from the hospital.
But he has been told he won’t be able to walk without help until at least February next year.
Dan has hopes of representing England the Open Strongman competition in five years, but after his injuries, surgeons said that might not be possible.
Despite this, Dan still hopes to recover from his accident and return to the gym and compete in the future if he can.
Dan said: “The surgeon said it could be the end of all Strongman competitions, but it’s case by case.
“He said it would be very rare for me to be able to compete at the level I was at again, but we won’t know until I start healing.
“My biggest goal is to be a dad and be able to chase my daughter and play with her.
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“I should be able to go to the gym and do some aspects of the Strongman stuff.
“There’s a chance I’ll still be doing their Strongman, but maybe not the same way I was before. I’m not going to give up [the dream].”
For now, Dan is taking his arduous recovery one step at a time.
“It’s been horrible but I’ve got a few goals to achieve like getting up and moving and now my next goal is to try and stay unassisted.
“The only thing that keeps me going is these little goals,” Dad said.
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