— national athlete involved in accident undergoing rigorous training and therapy

IT was Napoleon Hill who once said, “Victory is always possible for the person who refuses to stop fighting.” While this may seem like a simple quote for many, these words, however, are more than just quotes for 22-year-old Kristoff Shephard.

Shephard, who is a national volleyball player, was involved in a horrific accident in February of this year. A truck allegedly collided with the car he was driving at the time. While the other passengers in the car escaped unscathed, the young athlete was hospitalised for a month and 10 days.

Today, the determined athlete is on his way to recovery.

“I was in the hospital for a month and 10 days. Thus far, the recovery process has been great, the therapy and so contributed to me coming so far,” Shephard told the Guyana Chronicle.

With a support system built of friends, families and strong will, Shephard is getting back on his feet physically; he is also thriving academically and is set to graduate from the University of Guyana at the end of the year.

“The support has been great from my friends and family and I want to say a special thank you for that,” he said.

Shephard is not yet back on the court. He is currently going through a rigorous series of therapy and training sessions and while it is a tedious task, he believes the harder he works the better he will be.

“Currently I do physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and hydrotherapy under the great supervision of my amazing therapist, Damon Sandy. I do workouts in ways that I can because I always believe the more work I put in, the better for me,” he said, adding: “Recovery can be tedious sometimes, but I tend to so stay motivated by working out or watching Netflix.”

Cognisant that the road to a full recovery will take time and requires some hard work, Shephard said he is up for the challenge.

“Recovery is a process, and it will take time, you just have to stay disciplined and motivated and last but not least, don’t give up.”

Though working on his own personal development, he is also advocating for greater visibility for athletes across the country, like himself, especially those in the sport of volleyball.

“I do believe that more marketing can be done for the sport to showcase our athletes and by extension, the skill that they possess in the sport.”

He also wants greater recognition for the sport.

“As an athlete I intend to use my portfolio to garner coverage for the sport and by extension having the sport become more popular.”