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Kaitlin Rawson is as fierce as they come.

The Johannesburg local fell off a pole and broke her back, which may have stopped some in their tracks.

Despite this, she has gone on to become one of the best aerial pole athletes in the world.

The miraculous recovery began almost six years ago when Kaitlin fell off the pole during training and injured her spine.

She and her mother had decided to do pole dancing as a bonding exercise, frequenting a studio in Jozi that offered aerial yoga.

The two of them quickly fell in love with the sport and practised rigorously:

 

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A post shared by Kaitlin (@kaitlin__rawson)

Until one practice two years after getting into the physically intensive sport, Kaitlin had an accident that would leave her bedridden for quite some time, per News24:

“It was September 2016, and I lost my grip and fell. I landed on my neck and burst my vertebrae. I had fallen before, but the way I landed this time was different.”

She was forced to relearn how to walk after the freak incident, undergoing intensive rehabilitation for three months.

Before that, she also spent a week in the intensive care unit.

 

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Just five months after her injury, the 25-year-old hopped straight back into the game:

“When I left the rehabilitation centre, I was not 100%, but I was keen to go back to training. When I was in hospital and realised I would be fine, I started thinking about going back to training.”

Since then, she’s launched herself into competition after competition, including the World Pole and Aerial Sports Championships.

 

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She had to compete in the ParaPole PPM1 decreased muscle power division of the competition as her right side had not fully recovered from the injury, but still, she was awarded the top spot.

Kaitlin is currently ranked number one in her category worldwide, which she admits is “extraordinary”.

This year, Kaitlin and her mother, along with 10 other South Africans, have qualified for the World Pole and Aerial Sports Championships.

That will take place this month in Lausanne, Switzerland:

 

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She said she would be really happy if she could break this year’s record for her category, which is 35 points and held by Mexican athlete Isabel Aguilar.

Judging by her recovery time, you’d be a fool to write Kaitlin off.

[source:news24]