Travis Roy
Encyclopedia
Travis Roy is an American former college ice hockey
player.
Roy attended Yarmouth High School as a freshman, then transferred to nearby North Yarmouth Academy in order to pursue an athletic scholarship
. Roy transferred again and graduated from Tabor Academy
and received an ice hockey scholarship to Boston University
.
On October 20, 1995 – just eleven seconds into his first-ever shift for Boston University men's ice hockey
team – a 20-year-old Roy slid head-first into the boards after a University of North Dakota player, Mitch Vig, avoided his check, cracking his fourth and fifth vertebra and leaving him a quadriplegic.
Since the accident, he has regained movement in his right arm.
Roy and Sports Illustrated
writer E.M. Swift wrote his autobiography, Eleven Seconds. He set up a foundation to campaign for spinal cord
injury research.
In 1998, NYA's ice arena was named the "Travis Roy Arena" in his honor and his number retired. At Yarmouth High School he wore 00 and at NYA he wore 00. His BU #24 hangs in the rafters alongside Eric Weinrich
's #7 - the only numbers retired by NYA. In October 1999, Roy's #24 was retired, and raised to the rafters of Boston University's Walter Brown Arena. Roy is the only BU hockey player to have been honored with a retired number.
In 1997, Roy started a foundation called "The Travis Roy Foundation" to help spinal cord injury survivors and to fund research into a cure. Inspired by Travis' own story, the lifeblood of the Travis Roy Foundation has been the generosity of individuals, corporations and foundations across North America. This generosity has made an immediate impact on the lives of many individuals.
Since 1997 the Travis Roy Foundation has distributed more than $2.5 million in individual grants and to research projects and rehabilitation institutions across North America. The individual grant funds have been used to modify vans and to purchase wheelchairs, computers, ramps, shower chairs, and other adaptive equipment to help paraplegics and quadriplegics live their lives.
According to The Travis Roy Foundation, The Travis Roy Foundation is uniquely positioned to touch individual lives with its focus on providing adaptive equipment and sponsoring research. In the US alone, there are approximately 250,000 people currently living with a spinal cord injury and 13,000 new injuries each year.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player.
Roy attended Yarmouth High School as a freshman, then transferred to nearby North Yarmouth Academy in order to pursue an athletic scholarship
Athletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport...
. Roy transferred again and graduated from Tabor Academy
Tabor Academy
Tabor Academy is a highly selective independent preparatory school located in Marion, Massachusetts, United States. Tabor is known for its marine science courses...
and received an ice hockey scholarship to Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
.
On October 20, 1995 – just eleven seconds into his first-ever shift for Boston University men's ice hockey
Boston University men's ice hockey
The Boston University Terriers men’s ice hockey program is one of the most storied teams in NCAA Division I hockey, playing its first ever game in 1918 and winning five national championships, while making twenty-one appearances in the Frozen Four....
team – a 20-year-old Roy slid head-first into the boards after a University of North Dakota player, Mitch Vig, avoided his check, cracking his fourth and fifth vertebra and leaving him a quadriplegic.
Since the accident, he has regained movement in his right arm.
Roy and Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
writer E.M. Swift wrote his autobiography, Eleven Seconds. He set up a foundation to campaign for spinal cord
Spinal cord
The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain . The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system...
injury research.
In 1998, NYA's ice arena was named the "Travis Roy Arena" in his honor and his number retired. At Yarmouth High School he wore 00 and at NYA he wore 00. His BU #24 hangs in the rafters alongside Eric Weinrich
Eric Weinrich
Eric John Weinrich is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 17 seasons in the National Hockey League with the New Jersey Devils, Hartford Whalers, Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers, St. Louis Blues and Vancouver Canucks...
's #7 - the only numbers retired by NYA. In October 1999, Roy's #24 was retired, and raised to the rafters of Boston University's Walter Brown Arena. Roy is the only BU hockey player to have been honored with a retired number.
Personal life
Travis is the son of Lee Roy and Brenda Roy.In 1997, Roy started a foundation called "The Travis Roy Foundation" to help spinal cord injury survivors and to fund research into a cure. Inspired by Travis' own story, the lifeblood of the Travis Roy Foundation has been the generosity of individuals, corporations and foundations across North America. This generosity has made an immediate impact on the lives of many individuals.
Since 1997 the Travis Roy Foundation has distributed more than $2.5 million in individual grants and to research projects and rehabilitation institutions across North America. The individual grant funds have been used to modify vans and to purchase wheelchairs, computers, ramps, shower chairs, and other adaptive equipment to help paraplegics and quadriplegics live their lives.
According to The Travis Roy Foundation, The Travis Roy Foundation is uniquely positioned to touch individual lives with its focus on providing adaptive equipment and sponsoring research. In the US alone, there are approximately 250,000 people currently living with a spinal cord injury and 13,000 new injuries each year.