“The combination of the ambulance ride, hospital
stay, MRI and other tests, ended up costing me $55,000”
We got GoFundMe’s coming out the wazoo after a wild
start to the Hawaiian season courtesy of that classic combo of
surfers throwing ‘emselves over the ledge at Pipe with no
travel insurance and the US’s out-of-control health costs.
Peruvian surfer Joaquin Del
Castillo, a surfer known for kinky airs as well as the
ability to impound himself in the Pipeline palace, shattered his
hip in ten places.
He is asking surfers to continue sending cash into his GoFundMe
account ‘cause he limped away from hozzy with a one-hundred gee
bill in his pocket.
Eimeo Czermak, twenty years old and
a Teahupoo kingpin, suffered spine and head injuries while
following a wipeout during his heat with the three Florence bros at
the Vans Pipe Masters.
“This was probably one of the hardest and scariest moment of my
life,” the carrot-topped heartthrob told his fans on Instagram.
“In the second slide there’s a little video of what happened and
the crazy part is I don’t even remember anything of this…💔 I don’t
know if I can even talk about what happened after I left the
contest so I’m gonna keep it to myself but I’m so happy and
grateful to be alive and looking forward to heal.
In the video, Eimeo Czermak is pitched head first, driven to
shore by the water patrol where we find him retching on the
beach.
Eimeo’s injuries were even worse than first thought, too.
In a little back and forth exchange with Eimeo’s dad a couple of
weeks back, turned out his kid is just hoping to get the use of his
legs again.
Now, fans and critics have gone head to head on the kid’s
Instagram account after Eimeo revealed he was 55k in the hole
‘cause he didn’t have travel insurance, wrongly thinking he’d be
covered by the Vans-sponsored contest.
In his GoFundMe message Eimeo writes,
I’m Eimeo Czermak, a 20 year old pro surfer from Tahiti who
suffered a serious injury to my spine and head competing at the
Vans Pipemasters on the North Shore of Oahu. I fell on a wave and
damaged my spinal cord and head, which caused a serious concussion,
when hitting the reef.
I am grateful for the Hawaiian Water Patrol and team of
lifeguards that brought me to shore but once arriving on shore, I
realized I didn’t know where I was and couldn’t remember what was
happening.
Shortly after, they put me in a stretcher and a neck brace.
That was when the adrenaline wore off and I felt intense pain on my
spine and couldn’t feel my legs.
I was taken by an ambulance to the ICU at a local hospital
where they performed various procedures and, although I told them I
did not have health insurance, they required me to stay overnight
which cost me $37,000.
After that, I couldn’t feel or move my legs for a week and a
half, and still to this day am dealing with the effects of the
injury and concussion, which has resulted in depression. I’ve never
been one to ask people for money or help, but this situation
unfolded without my control and has put me and my surfing career in
a very difficult position.
The combination of the ambulance ride, hospital stay, MRI
and other tests, ended up costing me $55,000.
If I’m unable to pay back the hospital bills, I won’t be
allowed to return to the United States or surf in Hawaii again
since I am from Tahiti (French
Polynesia).
This is heartbreaking for me because Hawaii is like a second
home to me and has played a huge role in growing my career because
of the major contests’ I’ve been able to compete in there. If I’m
unable to return to Hawaii, it’ll have a huge negative impact on my
surfing career.
So far, fans and pals have raised almost ten gees of the desired
fifty-five for Eimeo Czermak.
Not everyone was thrilled by the latest call for cash from an
uninsured surfer, although they were in the minority.
Hot take: people surfing life threatening waves shouldn’t do
it without medical insurance
Imagine going to the US and not having health insurance.
Then imagine surfing Pipe on top of that. Funny how the world stage
in snowsports doesn’t seem to have the same issue. It’s a given
that if you’re on the hill you have insurance – same should be said
here.
Ah, excuse me? But sorry to say as it is, he just had to
take his disposition especially as a high-level athlete. When you
know you’re going abroad especially in the field of sports and
worse as a HIGH LEVEL ATHLETE! SURF discipline, we know that the
danger is real. Then even every departure abroad sorry but you take
insurance WHY? Because you never know what could happen to us down
there. And he knows that medical bills in America are very
expensive. But here you go on social networks, because yes it’s
nice to be hot my friend but you must have known all this.
Most of the fury was aimed at Vans,
who recently made news by sacking most of their surf team, and
who appear to’ve ignored the kid after he left in the event all
trussed up in an ambo.
Wow The @vans Pipe Masters Invitational had no insurance for
the athletes at a wave like Pipeline . Sounds like a massive
liability problem
What???? The event had no insurance ? At Pipe? That’s crazy.
Get well my friend
Make a contest without insurance is ridiculous
@vanssurf really?!? No support to an athlete that puts his
life on the line to deliver a great show that makes your contest a
hit?!?! I mean, with all due respect it is unacceptable that you
guys would even consider treating the participant athletes with
such disregard 🤦🏾♂️ Once again the surf community will pull it
together for one of there own to cover up lame corporate greedy
disrespectful attitude towards the people that make it
happen!
@vans you guys should cover this.. it’s a drop in the ocean
for you. You’de be nothing without good surfers promoting your
brand
@vanssurf @vanssurfevents @vans Hook this boy up. Every
competitor needs to be covered. When competing you go hard or go
home for the show that gives you highlights. When shit goes down
the competitor needs to be looked after.
These athletes put their lives on the line for these events.
How do you not at the very least offer them health insurance for
injuries sustained during events?
The contest didn’t have insurance?! What Da Fuck?! You guys
could literally die surfing at that spot. There should definitely
be insurance requirements for these comps and contestants.
And so on, although some followers of Eimeo Czermak, better
versed perhaps in the machinations of contest insurance, said the
event was covered because competitors signed the obligatory waiver.
And, surely, no one travels without travel insurance.
A good lesson for Eimeo Czermak and Joaquin Del Castillo, don’t
y’think?
I can’t imagine a world where I wouldn’t shell out the few
hundred bucks for travel insurance.
Et toi?
You ever roam the globe without a little insurance back up?