You really have to be crazy to race down the ice channel on your stomach on a steel skeleton sled, gliding just a few centimeters above the ground, at 140 km/h. A sport for young people who are looking for the ultimate adrenaline rush. But a Luxembourg engineer with American roots also regularly ventures into the ice channel, except that Jeff Bauer is Knowing that he could achieve good results despite the pain, Bauer was drawn back to the ice rink. Until the pain became unbearable and sport was no longer an option. Only a rare operation was supposed to bring about improvement. “I found out about another type of hip replacement, ‘hip resurfacing’. This operation is carried out in particular on professional athletes who suffer from hip osteoarthritis and want to return to sport. Andy Murray (tennis), Patrick Kane (ice hockey), Isaiah Thomas (basketball) are examples. This operation accounts for less than one percent of all hip replacement operations because the procedure is more difficult than a conventional hip prosthesis and requires a high degree of precision from the surgeon to ensure the operation is successful. In October 2023 it was my turn.” The operation was successful, but Bauer now began a long phase of full recovery. “One week after the operation with a specialist in Washington, I flew back home to Park City, and my physiotherapy began the next day,” Bauer says, delighted about a personal stroke of luck. “Brett Bousquet, the former physiotherapist for the NBA team Milwaukee Bucks, was assigned to me. Brett has already coached one of the best basketball players in the world, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and has also challenged me very hard from day one.” The hard work has paid off, step by step Bauer has regained his old physical strength and even expanded the support team around him. “I still work with Brett every week, as well as with Robin Pieper, my trainer from Austria, and Monya Maleki, a physiotherapist with a ballet background. With Monya I do once a week, flexibility and hip strength exercises via video conference.” Impressive comeback with a medal On November 10, Bauer then set off from Park City to Whistler for a two-week training camp. He finally wanted to know how well he could still do on the ice track. “Whistler is the fastest track in the world, where speeds of up to 140 km/h can be reached. It is also very technical and falls are common in turn six. I was therefore very nervous, but it seemed to me to be the best choice to get my feeling back,” said Bauer, who took part in his first competition since the World Championships in St. Moritz and Celerina just two weeks later (November 28 and 29). “It was my first race at the North American Cup. I was so grateful that I could be there, because a year ago at this time I could barely walk. I had two good races. On the first day I finished seventh out of 15 and was very happy with that result, even though my second run wasn’t so good. The next day I had two very good runs and finished fifth. In my last run my start time was the fastest since the 2019 World Championships in Whistler. I even received a medal at the awards ceremony for my fifth place. It was the first time I finished in the top six and got a medal,” says the skeleton racer, who is back on the road to success. “I now plan to continue to take part in the North American tour and to now 51 years old. The COSL speed skater, who has already played basketball and American football in his sporting career and has gained experience in triathlon, has been tinkering with his skeleton sled for several years – in pursuit of the last hundredth of a second. Because the President of the Union Luxembourgeoise de Skeleton is the only athlete from the Grand Duchy who practices this high-speed sport at a professional level. And with ambitious goals: The path should lead to the XXV Olympic Winter Games around Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo in Italy. A path that was paved with many obstacles. “During the 2022/23 season, I had trained well and achieved some decent results, but I felt increasing pain in my hip with every race,” began a long period of suffering for the athlete, who trains in Whistler, Canada. In February 2023, the athlete was finally diagnosed with fourth-degree arthrosis. “It was a moment of incredible sadness for me, because I thought my career was now over.”Knowing that he could achieve good results despite the pain, Bauer was drawn back to the ice rink. Until the pain became unbearable and sport was no longer an option. Only a rare operation was supposed to bring about improvement. “I found out about another type of hip replacement, ‘hip resurfacing’. This operation is carried out in particular on professional athletes who suffer from hip osteoarthritis and want to return to sport. Andy Murray (tennis), Patrick Kane (ice hockey), Isaiah Thomas (basketball) are examples. This operation accounts for less than one percent of all hip replacement operations because the procedure is more difficult than a conventional hip prosthesis and requires a high degree of precision from the surgeon to ensure the operation is successful. In October 2023 it was my turn.” The operation was successful, but Bauer now began a long phase of full recovery. “One week after the operation with a specialist in Washington, I flew back home to Park City, and my physiotherapy began the next day,” Bauer says, delighted about a personal stroke of luck. “Brett Bousquet, the former physiotherapist for the NBA team Milwaukee Bucks, was assigned to me. Brett has already coached one of the best basketball players in the world, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and has also challenged me very hard from day one.” The hard work has paid off, step by step Bauer has regained his old physical strength and even expanded the support team around him. “I still work with Brett every week, as well as with Robin Pieper, my trainer from Austria, and Monya Maleki, a physiotherapist with a ballet background. With Monya I do once a week, flexibility and hip strength exercises via video conference.” Impressive comeback with a medal On November 10, Bauer then set off from Park City to Whistler for a two-week training camp. He finally wanted to know how well he could still do on the ice track. “Whistler is the fastest track in the world, where speeds of up to 140 km/h can be reached. It is also very technical and falls are common in turn six. I was therefore very nervous, but it seemed to me to be the best choice to get my feeling back,” said Bauer, who took part in his first competition since the World Championships in St. Moritz and Celerina just two weeks later (November 28 and 29). “It was my first race at the North American Cup. I was so grateful that I could be there, because a year ago at this time I could barely walk. I had two good races. On the first day I finished seventh out of 15 and was very happy with that result, even though my second run wasn’t so good. The next day I had two very good runs and finished fifth. In my last run my start time was the fastest since the 2019 World Championships in Whistler. I even received a medal at the awards ceremony for my fifth place. It was the first time I finished in the top six and got a medal,” says the skeleton racer, who is back on the road to success. “I now plan to continue to take part in the North American tour and to end the season with a World Cup race in Lillehammer,” said Bauer, who finished seventh and eighth in the North American Cup last weekend and, at the age of 52, finally wants to fulfill his dream of playing in his first Olympic Winter Games.
