Bionic miracle that let our new Torvill and Dean skate for glory
BRITAIN’S ice dance stars Nick Buckland and Penny Coomes have been dubbed “the bionic Torvill and Dean” after defying extraordinary odds at the Winter Olympics.
The couple, who are also partners off the ice, skated into today’s final after competing an emotional journey described as “nothing short of a miracle”.
Four years ago Nick underwent life-saving heart surgery which ended in him having a monitor the size of a USB stick implanted in his chest.
As he returned to action Penny suffered a horrific injury which left her knee cap shattered into eight pieces.
Amazing
At first doctors feared she might never walk again. She had two major operations and is still undergoing rehab treatment.
Yesterday the pair, both 28, put themselves in the hunt for a medal after an impressive display in the short dance event at the Gangneung Ice Arena in South Korea.
Penny from Maidenhead, Berkshire, said last night: “It felt amazing being out there after everything we’ve been through.
“It was a very special and powerful moment.
“I’ve had two surgeries and a lot of blood, sweat and tears.
“I couldn’t walk for three months and it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to go through. While I wish it never happened, I am thankful for the journey because I’ve found a lot of inner strength.”
The couple have overcome a series of adversities since meeting as teenagers.
They suffered a devastating blow when Nick, from Nottingham, had his heart surgery in 2013.
The couple were back on the ice in time to compete in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia, finishing 10th. But disaster struck again in June 2016 when Penny suffered her fall during a training session in Michigan, USA.
She was flown back to Britain for surgery which included implanting wires to stabilise her knee.
She needed a second operation at the start of last year.
Nick, meanwhile, was forced to practise alone, lifting a sandbag as he skated through their intricate dance programmes.
Penny’s proud mother Jane, who flew to South Korea at the weekend, said: “If you saw what she went through on a daily basis, it is a miracle that she’s even here.
“After she smashed her knee, she had no knee cap at all. They had to literally piece it together.
“For them to be at the Olympic Games after all they have had to endure over the last few years is absolutely fantastic.
“We call her Bionic Woman and he is called Superman.”
The pair were not born when Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean won gold in Sarajevo in 1984.
But Christopher, 59, choreographed their routine which wowed the judges yesterday.