Teenage gymnast feared paralysed for life after horror fall

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Wang Yan, listed as 15 or 16 years-of-age, fell headfirst from the uneven parallel bars, breaking her neck and losing consciousness after attempting an audacious dismount.

Now in a stable condition, doctors said she was fortunate to have survived at all given the severity of her injury.

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Tragedy strikes as young gymnast Wang Yan takes a headfirst tumble

"It's a very serious injury," said Jia Lianshun, the chief of the Bone Study Institute of the People's Liberation Army.

"The patient could not react to stimulant under the chest bone, and both hands lost the capability to move. The symptom is very similar to top marrow damage, which results in death in 98.5 percent of cases."

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Wang Yan is stretchered away from the Chinese championships in Shaghai

Reports said gymnasts at the games had been eager to impress by significantly increasing the difficulty - and potential danger - of their routines in hopes of winning an Olympic berth.

"The gymnasts all display their new routines with highest difficulty," national team manager Zhang Peiwen told the Chengdu Business Daily.

"It is a tragedy no one wants to see. I hope she can become better soon. I believe everybody is in sorrow."

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Wang Yan in full flight

Wang's injury is similar to one suffered by Sang Lan in the 1998 Goodwill Games in New York.

Sang broke her neck making a practice vault.

After surgery to stabilize her neck and 10 months of rehabilitation in New York, Sang returned home and maintained a steady regimen of study and physical therapy. Confined to a wheelchair, she is an official torchbearer for the 2008 Olympics.