Gymnast Breaks Both Legs And Dislocates Knees In Horror Accident

If you're confident enough you can get through it without throwing your breakfast back up, then you might want to skip to the 39 minutes mark to save yourself a bit of time.

Samantha Cerio from Auburn University in the US suffered horrific injuries at the Baton Rouge Regional, an event on the National Collegiate Athletic Association calendar.

She was attempting a double handspring double front flip with a blind landing (if that makes any sense at all to fellow non-gymnasts), but according to onlookers she came up just short, sending both her legs bending backwards unnaturally.

The exact injuries haven't been identified exactly by Auburn University, but Nola.com reported that she broke both legs and dislocated her knees - which is painful to think about, let alone experience it first hand.

Her coach, Jeff Graba, said afterwards: "It was pretty tough to watch,

"She's a trooper. The last thing she said was, 'Go help the girls.' The girls rallied around her. They're doing this for her right now."

Understandable, her teammates were shaken up after seeing the accident, but they rallied around her and created the hashtag #StickItForSam in honour of their injured teammate, who coach Graba described as the "heart and soul" of the team.

He added: "We wanted more than anything to do this for her."

Despite their best efforts, the team finished fourth overall, according to their website. Graba added: "I think we were out of gas." Totally understandable, given the circumstaces.

"Emotionally spent. But I thought the girls fought hard. They did a great job."

After the event, Samantha tweeted a picture of herself in happier times, but announced that the event would be her last as a gymnast.

She said: "Friday night was my final night as a gymnast. After 18 years I am hanging up my grips and leaving the chalk behind.

"I couldn't be prouder of the person that gymnastics has made me to become. It's taught me hard work, humility, integrity, and dedication, just to name a few."

"It's given me challenges and road blocks that I would have never imagined that has tested who I am as a person. It may not have ended the way I had planned, but nothing ever goes as planned."

She continued: "Thank you Auburn family for giving me a home and a chance to continue doing the sport that will always be my first love.

"I am honored to have had the privilege to represent the navy and orange AU for the past 4 years with my team by my side.

"Thank you for letting me share my passion with you. Thank you for letting me be a part of something bigger than myself."

Here's hoping she makes a full and speedy recovery.