Olympic wrestling champion Rulon Gardner and two other men were recovering on Monday after surviving a small plane crash two days earlier and spending a night in the wilderness.
The three were rescued by a Lake Powell fisherman on Sunday night after their plane crashed into Good Hope Bay near the border between the states of Arizona and Utah.
Gardner was a passenger in the Cirrus SR 22 along with pilot Randy Brooks and his brother, Leslie Brooks, according to a news release from Becki Bronson, public information officer for Garfield County. The plane was flying low when it struck the water.
PHOTO: AP
"The plane went from 240kph to zero in about two seconds," Gardner told CNN early on Monday morning.
All three men were able to get out of the plane before it sank.
Authorities are uncertain of the exact location of the crash, but the three men swam for more than an hour in 7oC water before reaching shore and then spent the night without shelter, according to the release.
None suffered life-threatening injuries, authorities said.
"I think I'm really lucky," Gardner said, "after everything I have been through."
Gardner and the Brooks called a relative to take them for medical attention in American Fork.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, Bronson said.
"It takes only about 30 minutes for someone swimming in 44 degree water to start suffering the effects of hypothermia, so the fact that they swam in it for an hour, not to mention surviving the plane crash and the night without fire or shelter, is pretty amazing," said Steven Luckesen, a district ranger at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. "If these guys were a cat with nine lives, they just used up three of them."
Gardner pulled one of the most stunning upsets in Olympic history at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, winning the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling by ending Alexander Karelin's 13-year international winning streak. In 2004 in Athens, Gardner won the bronze medal, and in wrestling tradition, left his shoes on the mat as a symbolic way of announcing his retirement.
This is not the first time, he has survived a life-threatening accident.
In 2002, he became stranded while snowmobiling in remote parts of the state of Wyoming and lost one of his toes to frostbite.
Then in 2004, he was struck by an automobile while riding a motorcycle.
Twelve days after winning her second Grand Slam title at the French Open, Coco Gauff fell at the first hurdle on grass in Berlin on Thursday as beaten Paris finalist Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the quarter-finals. Recipient of a first round bye, American Gauff lost 6-3, 6-3 to Chinese qualifier Wang Xinyu as world number one Sabalenka beat Rebeka Masarova 6-2, 7-6 (8/6) in her second round tie. Winner of 10 main tour titles, including the US Open in 2023 and the WTA Finals last year, Gauff has yet to lift a trophy in a grass-court tournament. “After I won the first
Sergio Ramos on Tuesday outfoxed two Inter players and artfully headed home the first goal for Monterrey at the FIFA Club World Cup. The 39-year-old Ramos slipped through the penalty area for the score just as he did for so many years in the shirts of Real Madrid and Spain’s national team, with whom he combined smarts, timing and physicality. Ramos’ clever goal and his overall defensive play at the Rose Bowl were major factors in Monterrey’s impressive 1-1 draw against the UEFA Champions League finalists in the clubs’ first match of the tournament. “There is always a joy to contribute to the
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka staged a “crazy comeback,” saving four match points before beating Elena Rybakina 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (6) in the quarter-finals of the Berlin Open on Friday. Sabalenka was 6-2 down in the final-set tie-breaker, but won six straight points to reach her eighth semi-final of the season. “Elena is a great player and we’ve had a lot of tough battles,” Sabalenka said. “I have no idea how I was able to win those last points. I think I just got lucky.” “I remember a long time ago when I was just starting, I won a lot of matches being down
While British star Jack Draper spent the past week trying to find rhythm and comfort in his first grass tournament of the season at the Queen’s Club Championships in London, Jiri Lehecka on Saturday bulldozed everything in his path. After more than two furious hours of battle, their form was reflected in the final scoreline as Lehecka toppled a frustrated Draper, the second seed, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 to reach the biggest final of his career, against Carlos Alcaraz. Lehecka is also the first Czech to reach the men’s title match at Queen’s since Ivan Lendl lifted the trophy in 1990. Draper, who
RSS