Strongman competitor Dan Jones has revealed the shocking reality of the freak accident that left both his kneecaps “shooting up into his thighs” during a race at a contest in Southport — an incident so gruesome that the video has been viewed more than 2.6 million times on TikTok.
The 31-year-old tore both patellar tendons while sprinting with 80kg strapped to his body on September 1, describing the pain as feeling like he was “on fire.”
“It was horrendous,” Jones told BBC Radio Stoke. “Every time I looked down I felt sick because you could see the kneecaps about two or three inches higher than they should have been. I’d have probably been better off breaking a leg.”
Despite the catastrophic injury, Jones was stunned that it happened in what he thought was the least dangerous test of the day. “We still don’t know why the first one went. It’s crazy. This was actually the lightest event and the safest one,” he explained. Earlier, he had already picked up a car and pulled a truck. “Possibly it’s a wear and tear from the rest of the day.”
Dan shared the moment on his TikTok, which can be seen below – warning, this is not for the faint-hearted:
Jones underwent surgery and spent weeks in Leighton Hospital in Crewe before finally being discharged.
“My biggest goal is to get home and be a dad,” he said prior to his release. “If I can train and compete after that, that’s a bonus.”
The timing has been especially difficult for the Cheshire athlete, who revealed he missed key milestones with his 11-month-old daughter while stuck in hospital. “My 11-month old daughter — I’ll have missed her first day of nursery, I’ve missed her crawling, I’ve missed her trying to pull herself up. It’s very sad but it’s such a hard thing to get my head around. It’s been very hard on the brain.”
Being laid up in the hospital also caused the strongman to lose around 35lbs from lack of training and a reduced calorie intake.
Other strongmen who suffered the same double tendon rupture reached out to Jones, warning him that recovery is slow and brutal. Some were in casts and unable to walk for three months. Jones, though, is trying to stay optimistic. “I’m doing pretty good considering I only got operated on three-and-a-half weeks ago,” he said.
Social media users who watched the viral clip shared their shock in the comments: “Oh gosh! I can almost feel your pain!” wrote one. Another added: “Oh my good god, that looked horrendous.” One fan admitted: “My heart actually stopped for a second.” A fourth summed up the general mood: “That’s horrible hope you get better soon.”
With Jones continuing to document his recovery on TikTok, and has revealed that he is once again back in the gym and training. We wish him the very best on his ongoing recovery journey.
Featured image credit: TikTok/@danj3903 (screenshot)
