GALL James Richard

General
AMBASSADOR
He is an ambassador for the 'Cardiac Risk in the Young' [CRY] charity in Great Britain. The charity offers help to those affected by young sudden cardiac death syndrome. Two of his friends have died from the syndrome. "As I'm sure is the case with everyone who has a connection with the charity, it's incredibly powerful, losing a young person from a cause that is so often preventable, and that stays with you for a long time. I am immensely proud to be taking on this role of ambassador and working with CRY towards raising even more awareness, especially within the sporting and hockey community." (Instagram profile, 27 Oct 2020; c-r-y.org.uk, 30 Apr 2019)

INJURY BREAK
He was seriously injured after falling through a skylight in May 2015. "I was rushed to hospital where I was put in an induced coma for two days and then I spent about a week in intensive care. It took me a long time to get back to normal. The first three or four months I was allowed to walk short distances at a slow pace but I was tired all the time and I was really wondering if I could finish my studies and if I'd ever be able to play hockey again. It was so demoralising." He returned to training after 10 months but struggled to get back to his previous standard. "I was so unfit and so far off what everyone else could do but the thing I struggled with the most was completely re-learning the game. Before the injury I used to just go out and play. When you're at your best you don't need to think about much. Suddenly I was missing balls I wouldn't normally miss; I was out of position a lot and I needed to re-train my basic skills and my game intelligence.".(bbc.co.uk, 02 Apr 2018)