Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes ofwebsite accessibility
Weather Alert
Rain continues, heavy at times
Show Less
Close Alert

Advances in prosthetics keep young athletes in the game


Kori Ticket, 16, with Mark Marich,{ } founder of Northeast Orthotics and Prosthetics. (WJAR){ }
Kori Ticket, 16, with Mark Marich, founder of Northeast Orthotics and Prosthetics. (WJAR)
Facebook Share IconTwitter Share IconEmail Share Icon

The latest in prosthetics is keeping young athletes in the game.

Kori Tickel, 16, a student at Somerset-Berkley Regional High School, is a case in point.

When she's not on the tennis courts, you'll find her on the volleyball court.

"I play in the back row mostly so I'm like the defensive specialist," said Tickel, who plays volleyball at high school and on a Rhode Island travel team.

And while, at two, she lost her lower left leg, below the knee, in a lawn mower accident. She gets no passes in either sport with her prosthetic leg keeping her mobile and competitive.

"At this point sometimes, I forget that I have it, and then I look down and I'm like, 'Oh there it is," said Tickel.

"Technology has made it all that much better," said Mark Marich, founder of Northeast Orthotics and Prosthetics.

He too, is an amputee, losing his right leg, above the knee, in a motorcycle accident when he was a teenager.

"I think the first one that I had was wooden," said Marich who has been there for Tickel and her family since the beginning.

What has changed?

"What's available to us and what we're able to use as the kids get older," said Marich.

For instance, the blade Tickel uses to play sports has improved.

"It's amazing. If we lined up all of her prosthetics, you would see the difference just in the stiffness of it," said her mother, Gayle Tickel.

Her latest blade is not stiff and has a lot of bounce to accommodate her rapid movements.

Another advance? More high-tech prosthetics for kids under the age of ten.

"Now there are running blades for the younger kids, there are more functional prosthetic feet," said Marich.

Keeping young athletes like Tickel in the game.

"This was what she was meant to do, and this was what she was meant to be," said Gayle.

Kori's advice to others?

"Don't get discouraged because even if there are limitations at first, you can find ways to adjust," said Tickel.

Loading ...