Sport

Black Hawk down: veteran Gary Wilson inspires others

Gary Wilson dropped out of high school in 1998 at 17 years of age, joined the army, and was subsequently deployed to East Timor and then Afghanistan – a deployment that changed the course of his life.

On 21 June 2010, a Black Hawk helicopter was crossing Northern Kandahar on a routine transportation flight when it crashed during its final approach to the landing zone into rugged Afghan terrain. Four men lost their lives that night, but Gary miraculously survived.

He now runs his own fitness and training business in Canberra called Bare Coaching and has been involved in the Invictus Games since 2017, rallying in support of his fellow injured veterans and their families.

A survival against all odds

The mission that almost cost Gary his life was meant to take four short hours.

Around five minutes before this helicopter was supposed to land, the pilot would start to lower towards the ground. They didn’t know how low they were at the time, and the pilot smashed into the ground, going from 210km/h to zero in just 100 metres – how quickly something can go horribly wrong.

“I crushed almost my entire left foot, my left knee, my left hip, two left ribs, my left ulna was snapped. Then I had boxer’s fractures on my knuckles and fingers, third degree burns, I broke my upper jaw, I snapped my tooth in half…,” says Gary.

He had severe traumatic brain injuries similar to Shaken Baby Syndrome where his brain tumbled around in his skull.

Over the next six months, Gary had to learn how to walk, talk, and use his left arm again.

A global community of wounded soldiers and an army matinee

At the same time, the Australian Defence Force was putting on a play that toured the country, so he signed up and became ‘Zach’ in the stage show.

While connecting with other wounded veterans through the play, Gary was introduced to the Invictus Games. Since he couldn’t run, his mate suggested he try rowing.

After competing in the Invictus Games, Gary’s zest for life reignited, and he was trying to work out what to do with it.

“So now I’m a personal trainer. I can train clients and show them with my resilience and my story that what happened to me doesn’t define me, and that’s what I’m trying to pass onto other people – that what happened to you doesn’t define you,” says Gary.

“Every day can count. The sun always comes up.”

Gary Wilson survived a Black Hawk helicopter crash in Afghanistan in 2010 and had to learn how to walk, talk, and move his arm again. Today he runs a personal training company, wanting to help others know that what happened to them doesn’t define them.

- Abbey Halter Read an extended version online at canberraweekly.com.au

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