Runner makes epic comeback after freak grassfire accident
In 2016, Turia Pitt crossed the IRONMAN World Championships finish line in Kona, Hawaii.
Finishing such an athletic feat is an amazing accomplishment in and of itself. But for Pitt, that finish line was something that pushed her from the brink of death to a strong, active life.
Six years ago, Pitt was in a grassfire that burned over 65% of her body. She was competing in an ultramarathon through Western Australia’s Kimberley region when a fast-moving brushfire trapped her.
Pitt was close to death with burns so severe that she needed immediate skin grafts. Doctors didn’t think she would survive. Pitt was in a coma for the first month after the fire and spent six months in rehabilitation.
“I’ve had over 200 operations, skin grafts, some of my fingers were amputated, my nose has been re-shaped by using a chunk of skin taken from my forehead,” says Pitt. Operations are ongoing.
Pitt had to relearn how to sit up, stand, walk, and talk. She was told she would never run again.
Pitt was a former model and elite athlete before the fire. Not being able to run was something she could not accept. So, she didn’t. From that moment forward, Pitt pledged to train for an IRONMAN, and had to start training literally one step at a time.
Five years later, Pitt not only finished one, but two IRONMAN races. She pushed hard in her rehabilitation and training and worked through her body’s new limitations.
“I had a really compelling reason to finish the race,” Pitt says. “I wanted to prove that I was fitter, faster and stronger than I was before the fire.”
Pitt is not only an IRONMAN finisher, but a motivational speaker, author, and mindset coach.
“I want people to understand that if they can nail their mindset, they can achieve anything,” says Pitt.
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