POLISH Kevin

Classification
Open (worldarchery.sport, 31 May 2021)

Type of Impairment
Spinal Cord Injuries (Facebook profile, 04 Jun 2021; wheel-life.org, 08 Sep 2015)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (Facebook profile, 04 Jun 2021; wheel-life.org, 08 Sep 2015)

Impairment Details
He was involved in a car accident at age 16, which resulted in spinal cord injuries. He has no feeling from the chest down. "I turned onto a dirt road, going about 30 miles per hour. Suddenly, a flock of turkeys stood in front of me. I swerved the car to the left to miss the turkeys, applied the brakes and went off the edge of the road and down a 100-foot bank. I finally got the car running straight down the bank before we hit a 2-foot stump that caused the car to jack-knife and roll about 10 times down the hill. I was thrown out of the vehicle and went about 37 feet up in the air, although I was wearing my seatbelt. The tree we hit broke in half and broke my back. The paramedics arrived shortly, but had to use the jaws of life to pry the tree open wide enough to get me out." (Facebook profile, 04 Jun 2021; wheel-life.org, 08 Sep 2015)

General
RETURN TO ARCHERY
A car accident on a dirt road while hunting resulted in paralysis. He was in hospital for three months, and was told by doctors he would not be able to sit or stand upright, but remained determined to return to archery. He started competing again six months after leaving the hospital, and finished second at an international tournament in Las Vegas, NV, United States of America, in 2000. "[The doctors] told me I still could compete in various sports but never again in archery. I informed them that they were wrong, and I would start shooting my bow again. I decided I'd do what I had to do to compete in archery tournaments. I worked out in physical therapy eight hours per day and often would get so tired that I'd pass out. When I woke up, I'd say, 'Let's go work some more.' I initially couldn't hold the bow up without falling out of my wheelchair. My dad took a ratchet strap and wrapped it around my chest to enable me to sit up straight without falling over. Then he'd loosen the strap some. Finally, I got strong enough to be able to balance myself in the upright position while holding my bow." (wheel-life.org, 08 Sep 2015)

OCCUPATION
He runs Night Creepers Bowfishing Guide Service, and works in his family's archery store, KJ's Pro Archery, in Carmichaels, PA, United States of America. (Facebook profile, 04 Jun 2021)