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Tony Hawk is a legendary skateboarder who held 73 titles during his prime. It is believed that Tony Hawk made the sport of skateboarding famous and brought it to the mainstream. The skateboarding giant was also titled as the best vert skater for 13 years in a row.

Tony Hawk invented several moves during his career. His extraordinary balance on the board often left the viewers at the edge of their seats, even biting their nails. Hawk recently talked about when he lost that balance while performing a move that almost ended his career.

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The flip that could have ended Hawk’s career

Tony Hawk opened up about one of the worst bone fractures of his entire career. The 54-year-old skateboarder tried a ” McTwist ” move with a 540-degree flip. “This was super traumatic, and it could have been career-ending in a lot of ways, and it’s probably the worst injury I’ve had in terms of recovery,” said Hawk.

via Imago

Tony Hawk didn’t have enough speed and landed on the wall before he was ready to make a safe landing. Whenever Hawk was in any such situation, he tried to save himself by landing in the squatting position. Even this time, Hawk tried to save himself by squatting, but that didn’t go well. Hawk feels that it didn’t work because of his age.

READ MORE: Tony Hawk Once Discussed Why Vert Skateboarding Never Got the Recognition it Deserved: “But there is this Element of Vert… ”

Hawk said, “I tried to save it with a squat, which is something I’ve done through the years, and maybe I’m a little too old for that now.” He added, “I could just feel it disconnected like I literally could feel it apart from my body. The first thing I said was I broke my leg. It’s just like I broke my leg, and I grabbed it and put it back out of desperation.

What happened after Tony Hawk fell?

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Tony Hawk underwent surgery, and a titanium rod was fixed in his leg, from his knee to his pelvis. The doctors put Hawk on crutches the very next day. Since then, the internationally renowned skateboarder has been trying to figure out how to balance and trust his leg.

 

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Hawk claimed that his leg starts to shake and limp if he generally tries walking for more than an hour. The skateboarding legend said his doctors were very supportive and never told him he couldn’t skateboard again.

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WATCH THIS STORY: Tony Hawk, Magic Johnson and More: Here’s How These Athletes Turned Into Big Entrepreneurs

Hawk hasn’t wholly stopped skateboarding and still practices on a mini ramp. Tony Hawk said he is very thankful for the modern medicine and advanced technology the world has today.