By: Hans Themistode
If you look at David Diamante, you will see a constant smile on his face. Why do not have? Diamante is being paid a high price for something he loves possibly more than anything in the world, called fighting.
Before most Boxing Matchroom broadcasts, Diamante shows up. His long, flowing locks dangled from his back as he walked over the wire with a microphone in hand. His perfectly tailored suits were draped over his slim frame as the previously mentioned smiling look spread across the arena. Moments later, the Brooklyn, New York native shouted “the fight begins now” before introducing the fighters who would face off that night in front of a large crowd.
Life is good for Diamante and he regularly shows appreciation and gratitude for the position he holds. And while he still considers himself one of the luckiest men in the world, it’s completely different now for other reasons.
On a cold Monday night in December, while riding his motorcycle in downtown Brooklyn, Diamante’s life suddenly changed. During his years as a ring announcer, Diamante was used to watching fighters fight in the ring. Now, it’s his turn.
Seemingly out of nowhere, Diamante found herself lying face down on the cold concrete. His motorbike? Somewhere in a pile a few feet away.
For those lucky enough to have never experienced a motorcycle rollover, describing what he experienced is an arduous task. So, in an attempt to understand what it was like in more general territory, Diamante analyzed the event in simpler ways.
“It’s like you’re walking and sliding on black ice, and you land on your butt,” Diamante said in an interview with Sports Illustrated. “I fell too fast, I couldn’t make it in time. That’s what I remember, the bike just swerved from under me. ”
Despite being a recognizable character, Diamante remembers lying in the middle of the road in excruciating pain before he was lucky enough to have someone stop and call 9-1-1.
When the longtime broadcaster was transferred to NYU Langone Health in New York, he was assigned several categories as doctors took a close look at his injuries.
“The spine surgeon told me he had never seen an injury like this without being paralyzed. I’m lucky, man. I’m really lucky. “
Immediately after examining him, the doctors began to carefully piece together the fragments of Diamante’s body. After 5 hours, along with countless rods and screws – the surgery was a success. However, while the doctors were productive in their surgical work, the damage from the wreck left Diamante in excruciating pain and indelible wounds all over his body.
“It felt like I was lying on rocks and boulders and knives and daggers. I can’t get rid of it. It’s all up and down my spine, the scar on my back, it goes from my head to my neck all the way to [backside]. It feels like I can’t find a comfortable position. Everything hurts, man. Everything hurts.”
Currently, Diamante remains bedridden, unable to walk or do some of the simpler things that many of us take for granted. And although the road back to normal is long, Diamante is not hiding from the hard work he will have to endure. In fact, he’s embracing it.
“I don’t walk is the unfortunate truth right now,” Diamante continued. “Now I believe I will walk and I believe I will walk pretty well, but going to rehab will take a long time. There are things like being able to brush your teeth, wash your hands, pick something up, or step up a ladder, or anything that people do normally, I just can’t do it now. I’m not even close to doing that now. It’s really hard to do anything when you’re in so much pain, so that has to be reduced. I don’t know how long it will take but I will get through it. I will be back to ringside again. ”
