Outaouais football player paralyzed in pool mishap facing lengthy recovery

Théodore Côté had a bright future ahead of him when he dove into a pool the night before Canada Day.

The 17-year-old was fooling around with friends at the start of a summer break before starting his college football career with the Cégep de l'Outaouais Griffons at the largest public college in the Outaouais region. But he never emerged from the water on his own, having fractured two vertebrae in his neck and compressed his spinal cord. 

Côté was left tetraplegic, with limited function and sensation in his limbs, and rushed to Sacré-Coeur Hospital in Montreal for emergency surgery.

More than two weeks later he remains at a Montreal rehabilitation centre, with his mother unable to transfer him closer to home in Gatineau, Que., because the nearest suitable hospital is in Ottawa, part of the Ontario health-care system.

"We tried to be able to have him close to home … but unfortunately because we're Quebec citizens we have to go with what Quebec offers," said Vania Pacheco, Côté's mother.

After Côté was denied a transfer to Ottawa, Pacheco had to take a leave of absence from her job to care for her son in Montreal. 

"I can't work so I can be with him, because he's all alone," Pacheco said. 

With a daughter in Gatineau, Pacheco is commuting frequently between the two cities. 

"It's difficult," she said, choking back tears.

'Long journey ahead'

Amid the heartbreak, her son's positive attitude has been an inspiration, Pacheco said. 

"He's incredible, he's just so strong," she said. "He has this courage, he's a fighter." 

While it is too early to predict if Côté will walk again, his mother hopes that with intensive physio and rehab, he may regain some mobility. 

"Even though it's a severe accident, he has this positivity that he's going to get out of it and be OK," she said. 

"He knows he has a long journey ahead of him.... He will fight to the end."

But mounting bills have imposed a huge stress on the family, she said. "Everything is so expensive, it's just crazy." 

'Life can change in an instant'

Now the Outaouais football community has rallied behind Côté, with an online fundraiser collecting over $47,000 to cover specialized physiotherapy and psychological support.

And his teammates say they will support Côté's recovery.

"We'll always be here," said Manix Piché.

Before of the accident, Côté's friends had been doing flips and tricks in the water, but they think he might have misjudged the depth, which was only around four feet, said teammate Alexis Guitard.

"We didn't expect it," Guitard said, adding that Côté's injury has impacted the whole team. 

Guitard and Piché both agreed that the accident had changed their attitude toward risk. 

"It's important to have fun, but to realize the consequences that can happen with your actions, that's what we learned," Piché said. "Life can change in an instant."