What Happened To Sang Lan, The Gymnast Who Broke Her Neck In 1998 Vaulting?

At the age of just 17, talented Chinese gymnast Sang Lan suffered one of the most devastating accidents in athletic history, breaking her neck while vaulting at a warmup for the Goodwill Games. Then, more than a decade later, the accident became huge news again when she attempted to sue multiple parties for her injuries, claiming she had been mistreated by a number of people. Lan was both hailed as a hero for her bravery and harshly judged for her lengthy lawsuits.

In 1998, Lan's neck broke when she lost control in the middle of a forward vault and hit the ground headfirst. Her chin was pushed down against her chest, fracturing her sixth and seventh vertebrae. After a period of silence following the accident, Lan would claim that she was distracted when somebody moved a mat in the middle of her routine. The damage to Lan's spinal cord was so severe that her legs were left paralyzed and she lost a great deal of movement in her arms. Lawsuits aside, her courage in the face of adversity has brought her huge celebrity status in China, where she is an advocate for the disabled.

In the aftermath of her shocking accident, Sang Lan became the subject of fascination both in the U.S. and China. While in the hospital, Lan was visited by an impressive lineup of celebrities, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Celine Dion, and Christopher Reeve. Thankfully the positive attention appeared to have bolstered her spirits to some degree. "I will never forget the moment DiCaprio appeared in my ward in New York, or the moment I dropped the Times Square ball for New Year's Eve 1999," she told China Daily. "Those moments encourage me to strive for a better life. I hope I can walk again, but if not, I can handle it."

Lan finally returned to China in 1999 after 10 months in an American medical facility and began studying broadcasting at Peking University. At home, she was also widely celebrated and grew very popular. People called her "wheelchair angel" and "the pride of all Chinese." Having become a major celebrity as well as an advocate for the disabled, she began working with Nike to fight for good causes, and her fame secured her a TV show with the Star TV network. In 2004 and 2008, she was even given the opportunity to carry the Olympic torch.

More than a decade after the accident, Sang Lan's story wasn't over. After many years of silence, the athlete opted to file an enormous lawsuit in 2011. In a monumental $1.8 billion claim, Lan sued Time Warner, the U.S. Gymnastics Federation, the Chinese-American family who were appointed as her handlers in the U.S., TIG Insurance, Ted Turner, and Riverstone Claims Management.

In the complaint, Lan claimed that she had only fallen badly because a mat was moved during her routine. However, at the time, her appointed handlers — K.S. Liu and K.S. Gina Hiu-Hung — had not let her tell her story to the press. When she tried to explain, the couple told her that she had brain damage to keep her quiet. Lan's suit alleged that the wealthy Chinese-American couple were beholden to corrupt Chinese officials and that during her time in their care, she was subject to inappropriate touching and bathing by K.S. Liu and another male family member.

Unsurprisingly, Lan's lawsuit won her some enemies, with critics calling her greedy. According to China Daily, an additional 17 people were added to the suit for sending her death and kidnapping threats online. Lan also alleged that the Liu family launched a preemptive strike to try to deter the lawsuit — attempting to smear her as lazy and avaricious and releasing her private emails and photos.

Sang Lan's enormous lawsuit resulted in a smaller payout than she was hoping for, but she did receive some compensation — around $10 million. Part of her lawsuit hinged on the claim that Ted Turner and Time Warner were supposed to cover Lan's medical expenses, following a solemn promise by the president of Goodwill Games. It was also alleged that Time Warner shouldered some of the blame for the accident itself, on the grounds that they had allowed too many people to be on the floor during the event.

In the case of Time Warner, the judge ultimately ruled that any promises of compensation had been too vague to be legally binding and that Lan had not pursued legal action in a timely manner. On the other hand, Lan did receive some money from her claims. According to China Daily, Lan's lawyers reached a settlement with TIG Insurance, the company that had originally paid out for her treatment in America and underwrote all medical expenses for the games. As a result of the lawsuit, the company agreed to cover her medical expenses on the Chinese mainland as well.

In 2013, Sang Lan married her agent, a former fencer named Huang Jian. "I don't need much romance," she told China.org.cn that year. "I want to be with someone that I can talk to about everything and share my sorrows with. I just want a simple [kind of] happiness." In 2014, Lan, then 33, gave birth to a healthy baby boy via a cesarean section in a Beijing hospital following a challenging pregnancy. "It was extremely difficult to have the child," Lan said at the time (via New China TV). "The hardship was beyond description, but I feel it's worth all the effort. I'm very happy now." Doctors had difficulty keeping her blood pressure stable, among other issues.

Besides her family life, Lan has continued her advocacy work, and as of 2019, she was the vice president of the Chinese Sports Committee. "I am an advocate for people with disabilities in China," she told the Icahn School of Medicine. "I focus on our rights to have a barrier-free society including in education and protection for retired athletes in China." Lan overcame tremendous odds following her devastating 1998 accident to achieve her personal goals and to use her celebrity to help others.

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