A DUTCH Paralympian is setting her sights on the able-bodied Olympics after a miraculous crash while training in her wheelchair. Twenty-seven-year-old Monique van der Vorst, paralysed from the hip down since the age of 13, was last year hit by a bicycle while training for the 2012 London Paralympics. During her recovery from the crash, the Paralympic silver medal-winning handcyclist began to regain feeling in her feet. After months of rehabilitation, she took her first steps in July 2010. Doctors remain baffled the unexpected recovery, but some believe the trauma of the crash jolted her body back into action. Van der Vorst told Reuters that she felt like a child learning to walk for the first time."I wanted to jump in the air for joy," she said. Van der Vorst has now signed with the Rabobank women's professional cycling team and hopes to one day compete at the Olympics. But the 2009 Dutch disabled athlete of the year said it has been difficult to walk away from a hugely-successful athletic career. "Although walking is the best thing you could do in life, I immediately missed the sport, the people and the challenges," she said. Van der Vorst is yet to bridge the gap on her cycling teammates, but Rabobank officials believe her willpower will lead to rapid improvement. The 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro looms as a distinct possibility.
