Neck guard sales jump after Sask. hockey player slashed by skate
21h ago
More adult players are now investing in the protective equipment.
Kyrell Sopotyk’s life changed forever on Jan. 22, 2021.
He suffered a snowboarding accident at Table Mountain near North Battleford that left him paralyzed below the waist.
The Aberdeen man was playing in the Western Hockey League with the Kamloops Blazers, although the 2020-21 season had been altered due to COVID-19.
Being a natural athlete, Sopotyk has managed to stick with his active lifestyle since the accident, excelling in multiple sports.
Just recently, Sopotyk suited up for Team Saskatchewan at the 2022 Junior National Championship in wheelchair basketball.
“It was a great experience. We were playing against the best under-23 basketball players from each province,” Sopotyk said.
“Just to be here and be able to compete at this level was a good learning experience for me moving forward.”
Learning new sports like wheelchair basketball and racing is something Sopotyk has worked hard to learn and compete at.
“It was tough finding something that you enjoy to play after the injury,” Sopotyk admitted.
“Just getting back into sport and something to do (to) keep you busy was huge for me.”
That competitive fire hasn’t left him; he still wants to win on future national stages.
The former hockey player will compete this summer at the Canada Summer Games in Niagara Falls, Ont., in wheelchair racing.
He will also get back on the hardcourt for basketball in the Canada Winter Games in 2023 in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
With an exciting future to look forward to, Sopotyk says the injury taught him that you can only control what you can control.
“The big one for me was just staying positive through the whole process. Right from the day of the injury, I realized that I wasn’t able to change the past and I can only move forward,” he said. “There was no point for my dwelling and getting down.
“Just staying positive and getting back into sport just really pushed me and it really just feels like life’s back to normal.”
Sopotyk says he tries to remind himself about the progress he’s made since the accident.
“Being able to look back at how far I’ve come, it’s crazy to think about when I was in the hospital and how tough things were and now it’s just an everyday thing,” he said.
Sopotyk hopes to one day become a Paralympian.
“That’s the main goal I would say moving forward,” he claimed. “Whether it’s in racing or basketball, that’s what’s pushing me.”
He says that with the love and support from his friends and family members, anything is possible.
“Ever since my injury, the amount of support I’ve had from people all over the world and family and friends (has been great),” he said. “They’ve always been there for me, and they’re still cheering me on.”