Back On The Ice

Naomi Williams, a rising star in the figure skating world, is redefining resilience as she prepares for the 2030 Olympics in the French Alps. After sustaining what could have been a career-ending injury, Naomi's journey back to the ice rink was anything but straightforward. Now stronger and more determined than ever, she has not only returned to the ice but has exceeded her previous abilities, crediting her renewed confidence to the unwavering support of her partner, coaches and medical team. Her story of grit, determination and perseverance shines as an inspiration to athletes everywhere.

In preparation for a competition in Turkey, Naomi and her skating partner of three years were on the ice practicing their routines like they'd done many times before. “We were working on a throw that we were pretty comfortable with, but was still pretty new,” Naomi said. “My foot stayed on the ice but the rest of my body kept going, and, in that moment, I knew I was hurt.” Seeing immediate swelling in her foot, Naomi decided not to skate for the rest of the day. It was most likely a sprain, but she knew that it was something more serious than that.

“I've had a sprain before,” she said, “This was different.”

Initially, Naomi treated the injury with physical therapy. After several weeks of not seeing improvement, she and her coaches decided to dig a little deeper. Competition was looming, so her coach recommended seeing Brad Dresher, MD, of Colorado Springs Orthopaedic Group who, as luck would have it, had already heard of her. Dr. Dresher's daughter—a young figure skater herself—has idolized Naomi since she first began skating at the World Arena Ice Hall three years ago. Even before they’d met, Dr. Dresher knew the caliber of athlete that Naomi is and knew he had to do everything in his power to get her back on the ice.

Once the MRI results were available, Naomi and Dr. Dresher went over the extent of her injury. The MRI revealed that she had two ligament injuries which could require surgery. While a more conservative treatment option was available, Naomi felt like she had to consider the surgical route. She discussed her options with Dr. Dresher, her skating partner, and both her coaches, all of whom were very supportive. “I expected them to be upset,” Naomi recalls, “We had all these plans to go to all these competitions, and I knew we wouldn’t be able to if I had surgery. But they both told me to do what was best for me.” Naomi ultimately chose to go the surgical route to give herself and her partner the greatest chance at achieving their goal of competing and succeeding at the national level.

After a lengthy discussion, they all felt confident that with the combination of Dr. Dresher's expertise and Naomi's determination, she would be ready for Nationals in time. What they weren't expecting, however, was to discover that the injury was far more severe than what the MRI revealed.

In the operating room, Dr. Dresher discovered that Naomi also had a cartilage injury. He remembers how his heart sank when he saw the true extent of her injury. “I was disappointed knowing that this would delay Naomi's recovery…her being fully recovered by Nationals and Junior World Championships was in jeopardy,” recalls Dr. Dresher. Besides delaying recovery, many athletes do not return to their previous level of competition after this type of injury. Dr. Dresher made the decision to treat the injury in a way that would give her the greatest chance. When asked how she felt about that in-the-moment decision Dr. Dresher made, Naomi said she was glad he did it. Prior to the surgery “He was very calm and reassuring. I figured, if he was calm, I had to be calm also.” Dr. Dresher recommended Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) treatments to assist in her recovery. It's a process that uses the patient's own plasma protein to help with healing and one that Naomi was excited to receive.

Naomi had her doubts about taking time off to recover from her surgery. “I never took more than a week off of skating at a time,” she said, recalling the nerves she felt about being away from her sport for so long. Although she was eager to get back at it, she understood that following her recovery plan was key to making a full recovery. “Naomi's drive, tenacity, and self-motivation was the primary factor in her recovery. She was an amazing patient,” said Dr. Dresher. “She is a perfect example of setting a goal for yourself and demonstrating that with hard-work, persistence, and proper-training, anything is possible. She is a fierce competitor, full of grit and determination. She was willing to work hard in every way to improve her potential for a full and quick recovery. Not once did she complain about the plan I had laid out for her.”

“When I got back on the ice, it was more about step by step recovery instead of rushing into the things I was doing before.” Initially, she took things slowly, foregoing jumps and throws for simpler movements. However, within six months, she was not only performing the way she had been before her injury but she was able to do things she hadn’t done before. “Some of the things were actually a lot easier after the surgery,” Naomi said. “Jumps and stuff took a while to get back to, but I landed the element I got injured on the second day of trying it again.”

Recovering in time, she and her skating partner placed 2nd at Nationals and 3rd at the World Junior Championship. When asked how she felt now that the injury, surgery, and recovery are behind her, Naomi said she’s glad that she had the surgery. “It gave me new confidence,” she said, jokingly adding that now that she has her “robot foot” she'll be OK. Naomi's advice for anyone who is in the midst of a similar challenge is simple: “Stay in the moment, and don't think about things that haven't happened yet. The closer you get to being back to sport, the more anxious you get and the more you start to plan things. You don't want to set the bar too high, or too low. Stay in the moment.”

Naomi's road to recovery was certainly a personal challenge, but she also credits her recovery to her incredible support system. “A big part of my recovery was knowing that someone was waiting for me, and also supporting me,” she says of her skating partner. “We both had big goals in the beginning of the season. To be out for half of it was really hard. It was my injury but I'm really lucky that I had a great support system from my doctor, coaches, and skating partner.”