Damar Hamlin has been cleared to return to the NFL just three months after a terrifying cardiac arrest almost claimed his life during a game.
The 25-year-old NFL star suffered a cardiac arrest on January 2 while playing for the Buffalo Bills in their NFL game at the Paycor Stadium against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Following the incident, the Bills released a statement that read: "Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest following a hit in our game versus the Bengals. His heartbeat was restored on the field and he was transferred to the UC Medical Center for further testing and treatment. He is currently sedated and listed in critical condition."
Hamlin made a routine tackle on Bengals' wide receiver Tee Higgins, after which he got to his feet before falling to the ground, and the game was subsequently called off.
Following the terrifying ordeal, it seemed that the 25-year-old's playing days were over, but he has since been given the green light to return to the field.
Hamlin has been cleared to return by multiple specialists, and he gave a statement alongside the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday (April 18).
"He’s fully cleared," the team's general manager Brandon Beane told reporters during a press conference, per Rolling Stone. "He’s here, and he is of the mindset, he’s in a great headspace to come back and make his return."
"My heart is still in the game. I love the game. It is something I want to prove to myself, not nobody else," Hamlin said via ESPN. "I just wanna show people that that fear is a choice that you can keep going in something without having the answers and without knowing what's at the end of the tunnel."
He continued: "Or you might feel anxious, you might feel any type of way, but you just keep putting that right foot in front of the left one, and you keep going. I want to stand for that."
The star saw heart specialists up and down the country, and this week has attended voluntary workouts with the Bills, and he has revealed that getting back into the sport will be good for his mental health.
He said: "Being around my teammates, the camaraderie of the sport of football, you know, that's what makes this sport the best in the world, is the brotherhood that it creates, the unity that it creates between all people of all aspects of life and just different journeys, it brings them together for one common goal."
Hamlin continued: "I feel like that's a direct correlation of what happened to me that night, you know, just bringing people together in prayer, love, but that's what this sport does as well, so my heart is in it completely and it takes a lot to be great in this game, and I got a long way to go. I got a long journey to go, but I'm committed to it each day, day in, day out."
We wish Hamlin all the best and hopefully, we'll see him back on the field soon!
