SHE’S MADE OF TOUGH STEPH
BIKE CRASH JUDO CHAMP BACK IN SPORT
BY CHARLES GALL A FORMER judo champion who was given a one per cent chance of surviving a horrific motorbike accident three years ago is back on the mats again.
Stephanie Inglis, a Commonwealth Games silver medallist, suffered severe brain injuries when she came off a motorbike taxi in Vietnam in 2016, while travelling to her job as an English teacher.
Placed in an induced coma, Stephanie stunned doctors with her recovery and returned to the UK six weeks later for further treatment.
But she was devastated to be told by medics she wouldn’t be able to take part in judo bouts again – as any head knock could cause her serious injury.
She said: “Before I found out from the surgeon that I wasn’t allowed to do judo, I was like, ‘Right, keep working hard, just keep doing what they are needing you to do, get better and you’ll soon be back on that judo mat where you belong’.”
Stephanie, 30, now has a new focus – helping to train judo stars of the future in her new role as an active schools co-ordinator in Perth and Kinross.
While Stephanie, from Inverness, admits it has been difficult not competing in a sport she loves so much, she feels fortunate to be given the chance to inspire the next generation. She said: “I feel so lucky that this is my job. I love inspiring kids to lead a fit and healthy lifestyle through sport. I’m getting them physically active and playing lots of games. I get them running around and they just love it.”
Speaking about her road to recovery, Stephanie said: “I woke up in Edinburgh not knowing what had gone on. I had to learn how to walk again, talk again.
“I was working with physios and during one session, I was tackling stairs. I remember thinking, ‘I’m a former elite athlete, I can handle stairs’ but I struggled. I felt very alone. I tried to remain as positive as I could but I had to overcome a lot of change.”
Stephanie had travelled to Vietnam to teach after picking up a knee injury.
It was during this period of her life that she realised how much she loved judo. She said: “I still had more to give and wanted to get back to training.”