Baseball fans were horrified when they saw footage of 20-year-old Kavan Markwood falling over the railing at the Pirates-Cubs game last week. Family and friends of Markwood, who fell 21 feet onto the warning track during the Pittsburgh Pirates game last week, are now calling his recovery “nothing short of miraculous.”
According to reports, Markwood is making strides while dealing with a broken neck, clavicle and back, per a GoFundMe update, and has apparently taken his first steps since the fall.
Kavan Markwood Takes Miraculous First
Markwood took a nasty fall and was listed in critical condition after he flew over the railing like a rag doll during the seventh inning of the Pirates-Chicago Cubs game at PNC Field on Wednesday, April 30. The video went viral as fans were confused as to how it could happen.
Shocked players immediately waved for medical staff to come help the fan, who was treated on the field before being carted off and rushed to a local hospital and reported in critical condition, according to Pittsburgh police.
When the incident went down, Markwood was overwhelmed with emotion as he celebrated Pirates legend Andrew McCutchen’s double, which drove in several Pirates’ runs, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.
Markwood is a former Division II football player, who was attending the game with his girlfriend Alonna and another friend, according to CBS News.
GoFundMe For Kavan Marwood Raises $45K
Sympathizers have come to Markwood’s aid with a GoFundMe, which has nearly reached its goal of $45,000.
“We are so relieved and grateful to share some encouraging news about Kavan,” GoFundMe organizer Jennifer Phillips, who is the mother of Markwood’s girlfriend Alonna, shared on Saturday, May 3.
She continued, “As of this morning, Kavan is awake, alert, and able to speak. After everything he’s been through since the accident on Wednesday night, this progress feels nothing short of miraculous.”
Phillips shared her thanks for the “prayers, support and generosity” regarding Markwood, adding “He still has a long road ahead of him, but today brought a moment of hope that we’ve all been holding onto,” she wrote on Saturday.
Kavan Markwood Is Former D-2 Football Star
Markwood was a 2022 South Allegheny High School graduate and was awarded the football team’s MVP in his senior year, according to reports. His collegiate career was spent at Walsh University and Wheeling University, TribLive reported.
“Everyone at South Allegheny would say he is a hardworking, highly resilient young man. He’s a fighter. He’s going to need that resiliency now. But he has it,” South Allegheny School District spokeswoman Laura Thomson told TribLive. “He’s touched a lot of lives at South Allegheny. We’re a small community. He’s a household name here. Everyone knows him. He has the prayers and the support of the South Allegheny community.”
Markwood’s football coach Frank Cortazzo had nothing but gleaming things to say about the former linebacker, calling him former linebacker “not only an outstanding athlete but an even more exceptional young man.”
“His resilience, heart and strength are truly unmatched,” Markwood’s former coach told reporters. “Please keep him, his family and his friends in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate this challenging time.”
The Pirates organization released a statement in the aftermath of a bizarre incident that left everyone in shock.
“We are all deeply saddened and truly heartbroken after the terrible accident that occurred [Wednesday] night,” Pirates chairman Bob Nutting said in a statement this week. “It was one of the most difficult moments many of us have ever experienced. We are devastated.”
The 21-foot-fall would probably kill many people, but clearly Markwood’s football background and athletic history is allowing him to recover faster than anyone thought, according to his family.