Lists

25 Athletes Who Survived Serious Car & Bike Accidents

Darren Ryding - March 4, 2020
Lists

25 Athletes Who Survived Serious Car & Bike Accidents

Darren Ryding - March 4, 2020

Just because you’re a rich athlete doesn’t mean you’re immune to the perils of the world. In fact, one thing many sports stars find themselves in is car crashes. Having a lot of money usually means you can afford to buy an expensive car or motorcycle. Of course, going faster also makes it more likely to crash.

Tragically, many athletes have lost their lives on the road. But today, we’re going to focus on the ones who had brushes with death and escaped. There’s a whole list of stories here, from tragic, career-ending injuries to hilarious scenarios. Some athletes even managed to escape without a mark on them. Check out our list below.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

25. Chandler Parsons

The former Atlanta Hawks is an NBA journeyman, playing for the likes of the Memphis Grizzlies, Houston Rockets, and Dallas Mavericks. But his career may have come to an abrupt end after a terrible crash in January 2020. A drunk driver hit his car.

Mandatory Credit: CNN

Parsons suffered permanent injuries in the crash, including a traumatic brain injury, disc herniation, and a torn labrum. Police charged the drunk driver with DUI after he fell asleep in the car and caused the three-vehicle collision. Parsons may never play again.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

24. Nick O’Leary

Now playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars, O’Leary has also starred for the Bills and the Dolphins. Many know him best as Jack Nicklaus’s grandson, but O’Leary is a prime athlete in his own right. However, he almost lost it all when he crashed his motorcycle in 2013.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

O’Leary was driving along in Tallahassee when suddenly, a Lexus just pulled straight out in front of him. After he smashed into the car, he went flying 100 feet up the road. Incredibly, he was able to walk away with minor scrapes and bruises. It could have been a lot worse.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

23. Jon Jones

Jones is arguably the greatest UFC fighter of all-time. His only defeat was a disqualification against Matt Hammill for using an illegal technique. Since then he’s been unstoppable. But outside the cage, Jones has a reputation for being a wild man. His 2015 collision was surely his worst moment.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

‘Bones’ ran a red light in Albuquerque before crashing into a Buick driven by a pregnant woman. The victim, Vanessa Sonnenburg, suffered a broken arm. The most shameful part is that Jones ran away from the incident. He came back to grab some cash and drug paraphernalia before running away again. Jones also ran his Bentley into a street pole while intoxicated in 2012.

Mandatory Credit: Sports Illustrated

22. Kendrick Norton

One of the worst scenarios on this list happened to Norton. The Dolphins defensive tackle ended up losing an arm following a horrendous collision in 2019. He tried to switch lanes in his truck when it clipped another vehicle and spun out of control, crashing into a concrete barrier.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

The impact completely severed Norton’s arm and ended his NFL career then and there. He estimates that he lost about half of the blood in his body. Fortunately, he hung on and survived. The Dolphins are still paying Norton’s salary, which has to be respected.

Mandatory Credit: Instagram

21. Michail Antonio

This is by no means the most serious collision on this list, but it’s probably the most ludicrous. The Premier League soccer star is one of West Ham’s fastest players. Too bad he doesn’t slow down off the playing field, because it got him into trouble on Christmas Day 2019.

Mandatory Credit: Twitter

Antonio was on his way to a Christmas party in London when he lost control of his Lamborghini Huracan. The car went flying into a garden, colliding with a shed. Antonio clambered out of the mangled car wearing a snowman costume. In sum, it wasn’t his most dignified moment, but Happy Holidays.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

20. Dennis Rodman

Rodman is notorious for his wild behavior. From partying with Kim Jong Un to his eclectic dress sense, the former Bulls star is a wildman. In fact, many people forget that he was a brilliant basketball player in the NBA. But he also had a crazy crash in 2010.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

He was driving on Interstate 95 when a tire blew out on his SUV. As a result of the blowout, the car flipped over and rolled several times. Incredibly, he was able to walk away with just a cut on his finger. Rodman is the gift that just keeps giving. What a man he is.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

19. Tom Brady

Everybody knows Brady, the NFL’s star quarterback for almost two decades. Already a Patriots’ legend, he’s a certain Hall of Famer. But even the six-time Super Bowl winner has run afoul of dangerous driving in the past. Car crashes don’t discriminate between the famous and ordinary Joes.

Brady struck a Ford minivan with his Audi in a 2010 run-in. This incident left him shaken up but unhurt. Another vehicle brought him away from the incident and he was back in practice the following week. He was a lot luckier than some of the other athletes on this list.

Mandatory Credit: Sky Sports

18. Carlo Cudicini

Cudicini was one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League during his prime. He wasn’t the tallest keeper but he was excellent at covering his line. The Italian played for both Chelsea and Spurs as well as a number of Italian sides throughout his career. But he was lucky to be alive after a motorcycle accident in 2009.

Mandatory Credit: Sky Sports

Doctors described his injuries as life-changing. After crashing his BMW motorbike in East London, he suffered a broken pelvis and two fractured wrists. However, he remarkably recovered and came back to play again. It’s a truly inspirational story.

Mandatory Credit: Sky Sports

17. James Ellington

British Olympian Ellington represented Team GB in Rio De Janeiro. He competed in the 100m and 4x100m relay. However, his biggest battle came after a motorcycle accident in Tenerife. Ellington was riding as a passenger behind Team GB teammate and fellow Nigel Levine when the devastating crash happened.

Mandatory Credit: Instagram

He suffered multiple broken bones in his legs, fractures to his eye socket, pelvis, and ankle, and lost six pints of blood when Levine crashed into a car. However, Ellington has confounded expectations by racing again. He has since sued his former teammate for damages after losing his sponsorships and funding.

Mandatory Credit: Sportsnet

16. Leonard Little

One of the most tragic cases on this list involves Little, a former defensive end for the St. Louis Rams. After leaving his birthday party in 1998, he crashed into and killed Susan Gitweiler in St. Louis. Gitweiler was on the way to pick up her son from a concert.

Mandatory Credit: Sportsnet

A court charged Little with involuntary manslaughter. They also ordered him to complete 1000 hours of community service. Little was way over the alcohol limit at the time. Many people believed that the court was too lenient with him because of his fame.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

15. Paul Williams

Former WBO welterweight champion Williams was once the most avoided man in boxing. Unusually tall for his weight classes, his reach and length made him an extremely difficult opponent. But in 2012, he was in a horrific crash that cut his career short.

Mandatory Credit: Bad Left Hook

He was driving his motorbike on a highway outside Atlanta when it happened. Williams crashed when he tried to avoid a car. The impact launched him 60 feet into the air and severed his spinal cord when he landed. This left him paralyzed for life. But at least he has his life.

Mandatory Credit: Sky Sports

14. Dario Franchitti

As a champion racing driver, Franchitti has experienced more vehicle crashes than anybody on this list. In fact, his career ended on doctors’ orders after a crash damaged vertebrae in his back. But we’re going to focus on a collision that happened off the racetrack back home in hs home of Scotland in 2003.

Mandatory Credit: UPI

The Daytona, Indy 500 and IndyCar winner crashed his motorcycle and suffered a serious back injury. He missed most of the season, but returned the next year. Tragically Dan Wheldon, his friend and replacement for the year, died on the track in 2011.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

13. Ben Roethlisberger

The veteran Steelers quarterback is an NFL legend. With two Super Bowls to his name and six Pro Bowl appearances, he’s been effective for a long time. But he actually came close to death in 2006 after a terrible motorcycle accident. Doctors said that his chances of survival were touch and go.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

He suffered several major injuries including a broken jaw and a nine-inch laceration to the back of his head. It took seven hours of surgery to put him back together. Ironically, the incident came after the Steelers criticized him for not wearing a helmet. Fortunately, he recovered. 

Mandatory Credit: Sports Illustrated

12. Hermann Maier

One of the most accomplished alpine skiers in history, Maier is a two-time Olympic gold medalist. He also has three World Cup and three World Championships to his name. In short, the Austrian was a sublimely talented racer few could keep up with.

Mandatory Credit: Sports Illustrated

But a devastating motorcycle accident in 2001 looked like it ended his career. The Herminator broke both of his legs and doctors told him he’d never walk again. However, Maier defied the odds to claim silver and bronze medals in the 2006 Winter Games.

Mandatory Credit: Sky Sports

11. Dave Rudisha

A two-time Olympic champion, Rudisha has no right to be alive after a horrific collision with a bus in his native Kenya. The master of the 800m sprint is also a two-time world champion. But all of those accolades mean nothing in a life or death situation he found himself in.

Mandatory Credit: Twitter

You can see from the image above just how bad the crash was. He was driving on a highway in western Kenya when a tire burst and he lost control, smashing into a bus. Insanely he was able to walk away without a scratch. ‘Thank God for the gift of life,’ he later tweeted. Amen to that.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

10. Dany Heatley

Imagine being responsible for the death of one of your close friends and teammates. That’s the horrific position that Heatley found himself in 2004 when he lost control of his Ferrari. The Atlanta Thrashers star was driving the high-powered supercar like a wild man when it smashed into a brick pillar.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

Dan Snyder was a passenger in the car. He took the brunt of the damage and went into a coma for several days before he passed away. A court originally charged him with vehicular homicide before reducing it to reckless driving. Eventually, he left Atlanta as he tried to escape the memory of the horrible event.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

9. Anthony Grundy

Grundy is a story of wasted potential. He had a journeyman’s career in professional basketball, playing in the Philippines, Greece, and Iran. The Kentucky native also had a brief spell with the Atlanta Hawks. Sadly, his exploits off the court tended to land him in court.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

Police arrested him for his fourth DWI in 2011. Border patrol caught him trying to reenter the US after he absconded to Ghana. In 2019, he struck and killed a pedestrian while driving with no license or insurance. Later that year, he died from stab wounds suffered during an altercation in Louisville.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

8. Kellen Winslow II

Winslow is most notorious for his recent rape case. But he’s on this list for a different reason. He was learning to ride his motorcycle in a parking lot in 2005 when he suffered an injury that cost him millions. Winslow tore his ACL and suffered a serious shoulder injury.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

In short, he was out for the full season, missing out on massive incentive bonuses. Later on, he missed another six weeks after getting a staph infection in his knee. After the accident, several franchises tried to restrict their players from riding motorcycles. It didn’t always work.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

7. Donte Stallworth

Stallworth had a meandering NFL career, playing for seven different franchises. However, in 2009 his name went into disrepute following a fatal collision in Miami Beach, Florida. Stallworth was speeding in his Bentley Continental while intoxicated.

Mandatory Credit: Vice

He smashed into Mario Reyes and killed him. Under a plea deal, he received a sentence of 30 days in the county jail, plus 1,000 hours of community service, two years of community control, and eight years’ probation. He’s now working as an anti-terror consultant at Valens Global.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

6. Chad Jones

Jones doesn’t even know how he managed to crash his Range Rover in 2010. There was no alcohol in his system, so he thinks he must have dozed off. But firefighters ended up cutting him out of his mangled car after he crashed into a lamp post. His passengers were fine but Jones wasn’t.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

His football career basically ended because the wheel axle jabbed through his ankle, to his shin and thigh. Initially, doctors thought that they would have to amputate his leg. Fortunately, it didn’t come to that. Then he tried to make a go at a baseball career with the Cincinnati Reds.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

5. Stephen Curry

The Warriors star was very lucky to walk away unscathed from a three-car pileup in Oakland. The driver of a silver Lexus lost control of his vehicle and hit Curry in a different lane. You can see by the state of Curry’s Porsche that he was lucky. But fortunately, everybody walked away from the incident without injury.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

Curry even posed with police officers for photographs. It wasn’t his lucky day but it was definitely theirs as they took pictures with the NBA star. It’s not every day you get to meet a six-time All-Star and a three-time NBA champion. A win is a win.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

4. Aldon Smith

Smith can’t stay out of trouble. First of all, he crashed in 2013 and subsequently went to rehab because of drinking problems. But worse was to come for the former Raiders star. In 2015, a hit-and-run in California saw police arrest him. Then the Raiders released him.

Mandatory Credit: CBS

That’s a pretty bad sequence of events. Smith crashed into a parked car. The owner confronted him and called the police. After that, Smith had to take a sobriety test which he flunked miserably. A judge sentenced him to 20 days in jail and to take anger management classes.

Mandatory Credit: Allsport

3. Jay Williams

The Chicago Bulls had high hopes for Williams. An NCAA champion, Duke University retired his No. 22. But sadly, Williams lasted less than two seasons in the NBA. He suffered devastating injuries in 2003 following a terrible motorcycle accident. Fate can be cruel.

Mandatory Credit: Allsport

He struck a light pole with his bike and went soaring 10 feet into the air. Williams suffered a bad leg injury that essentially cut his professional basketball career short. Although he attempted several comebacks, he was never able to recover his explosiveness.

Mandatory Credit: Sports Illustrated

2. Bobby Hurley

Hurley only lasted for four seasons in the NBA. The former Sacramento Kings point guard was the seventh overall pick in 1993. But in his rookie season, he suffered a horrific incident that changed his life and hampered his progress. To be honest, he was just lucky to be alive.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

On his way home after a game, Hurley was in a terrible crash. A station wagon crashed into his SUV, causing him life-threatening injuries. The impact sent him flying through the windshield because he wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. He suffered a ridiculous 12 injuries in the collision.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports

1. Errol Spence Jr.

One of the best boxers on the planet, Spence’s car crash stunned the world. He was driving his Ferrari in Dallas when he lost control. Then the supercar flipped over multiple times shooting Spence into the air. He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt otherwise he would surely have been crushed.

Mandatory Credit: Instagram

Somehow Spence walked away with no broken bones. He did suffer lacerations to his face and some broken teeth but that’s a small price to pay. The IBF and WBC welterweight champion hasn’t fought since the incident. Only time will tell if he’s the same fighter after such a traumatic event.

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