Olympic gold medalist swimmer Amy van Dyken-Rouen, who had her spinal cord severed last week in an ATV accident, is being moved to the Craig Hospital in Denver on Wednesday.
Van Dyken-Rouen has been hospitalized in Scottsdale, Arizona since the accident, and will be transported by Angel MedFlight to her native Denver, according to her Twitter feed.
USA Paralympic coach Dave Denniston said in a televised interview earlier this week that Van Dyken-Rouen was paralyzed per conversations with her family.
Van Dyken-Rouen’s Tweets have remained optimistic throughout, saying that she was moved out of the ICU on Sunday. On Tuesday, she Tweeted that she “Already got some great news.. I can sit up past 15 degrees without my brace.”
The Craig Hospital specializes in spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury, and is a small 93-bed facility. It was ranked by U.S. News as the #7 hospital in the nation for rehabilitation, and as the #2 hospital in the state of Colorado of any kind.
Throughout the ordeal, Van Dyken-Rouen has maintained an undying positivity that has made her a national impact. In a really sweet moment, she gave this oversized ‘Hello Kitty’ balloon to her surgeon’s daughter on her birthday, and shared all of the balloons she got around the ICU.
GWS Malta