SURFER’S AMERICAN ODYSSEY
Young man who lost leg in accident will represent Wales in World Adaptive Surf contest in California
A GWYNEDD man who lost his leg when he was hit by a car as a teenager will represent Wales at an international surfing competition in the USA.
Llywelyn Williams, from Abersoch, is set to compete in the International Surfing Academy (ISA) World Adaptive Surfing Championships in La Jolla in California next month.
The 21-year-old had his right leg amputated at just 16 years old, after he was run over while skateboarding between Abersoch and Pwllheli in 2011.
He suffered a shattered pelvis, dislocated hips, a punctured lung, a perforated bowel and a split liver, but is now relishing his latest challenge.
“I’m excited, nervous, determined and scared,” he said.
“The director and head coach at Surfability, an adapted surf school based at Caswell Bay on Gower, contacted me after seeing a video about my recovery on Facebook.
“He said he was heading over to California this year as a volunteer at the competition and I told him I was interested in signing myself up.
“He helped me get in touch with the right people at the ISA and they said that, if the Welsh Surfing Federation were happy for me to do it, then I could join.
“They agreed and now I’ll be representing Wales as a one-man team.”
Following the accident, Llywelyn was left with a very small limb which, coupled with the damage to his hips and pelvis, made a prosthetic “extremely painful”.
To this day, the surfer says he finds it more comfortable to use crutches with- out a prosthetic leg.
Llywelyn, who spent three months in hospital recovering from his injuries, also hopes to compete in the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo.
“I’d been surfing for eight years prior to my accident so I was already hooked on the feeling of getting onto the waves,” he said.
“As soon as I got home from hospital, my friends, family and the community helped me to get back into the lifestyle and into the water.
“The first time I got in the water again after I had my leg amputated, I felt alive and I knew nothing was going to stop me.”
The first ISA World Adaptive Surfing Championship was held in September last year.
The competition serves as a platform for physically challenged surfers to display their talents.
● For more information, visit surfersponge.com.