Wintersports
Skiing
Bobby Brown’s recovery journey to full strength
How the pioneering freeskier overcame a treacherous back injury with the help of Wings for Life.
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A few weeks ago, spring made its debut in the northern hemisphere, a traditional signifier that flowers, warmer temps, and the annual Wings for Life World Run are just around the corner.
This year, the global event that helps raise awareness for spinal cord research is taking place on May 10th, 2026, building on momentum that’s been brewing for over the past decade.
To commemorate the occasion, we sat down with champion freeskier Bobby Brown, who revealed just how pivotal Wings for Life played in his return from a traumatic back injury in 2021, and why the Wings for Life organization as a whole is vital to the continued support of spinal cord research for extreme sport athletes and the world at large.
Bobby Brown competes at Red Bull Cascade at Solitude Mountain Resort, UT
© Mason Cameron / Red Bull Content Pool
Why others run for Wings for Life World Run
Brown’s skiing journey began in Denver, Colorado, where he spent his childhood immersed in action sports. Skateboarding, BMX, X Games - Brown loved it all, but his interest in skiing piqued after he witnessed Jonny Moseley pull off the “Dinner Roll” at the 1998 Winter Olympics. At 11 years old, Brown knew he needed to get out onto the mountain, especially with the range being so close to home.
“Something felt right about skiing right off the bat,” Brown said. “After I clicked into my skis, started learning and hitting jumps, I was sold. I was lucky to be exposed to the best skiers in the world at Breckenridge, and after that first season when I learned to backflip, I knew I wanted to do this thing forever.”
Thus began Brown’s foray into skiing competitions, where it was clear at his young age he had the talent to hang with the top in his field.
“Competitions were really big when I was younger, and after I did well at my first comp, I thought there might be something beyond having fun and riding,” Brown said. “18 years ago, I was 15, and showed up to an open contest at the North American Open at Breckenridge. Back in the day, you could just arrive and compete against the best pros in the world - even though you might have been a nobody and signed up online. I got fourth place in that contest against some of my idols - Jon Olsson, Tanner Rainville, and Jacob Wester were on the podium - and it then became a steady flow of events that led to the professional path becoming more official.”
Bobby Brown is an international freeskiing sensation
© Daniel Milchev / Red Bull Content Pool
Winning results started to pile up for Brown - Winter X Games gold medals, the Winter Action Sports Tour, the New Zealand Freeski Open - and a fast-track career that saw him land a coveted spot on Team USA for the 2014 Winter Olympics’ first-ever slopestyle skiing event in Sochi.
“Freeride/freesking - we didn't know what it was at the time,” Brown said. “It wasn’t super official or professional 20 years ago and I was lucky on the timing. As I was starting to grow with my career, the sport of freeskiing was starting to grow as well.”
In 2018, Brown returned to make the Olympic team again, but ended up with a knee injury and pivoted his career to take on more film related projects, traveling to Europe in 2021 to polish tricks at a Red Bull camp.
After being in Switzerland for 25 days, Brown was preparing to return home when injury struck.
“I was going for a switch-double-cork-nine - a very simple trick - and ended up overrotating for a triple-cork in a total mind lapse,” Brown said. “I went up in the air, got lost - which had never happened to that extent - landed completely on my back and felt a complete explosion.”
Bobby Brown recovering from his 2021 spine injury in Saas-Fee
© Courtesy of Bobby Brown
I was going for a switch-double-cork-nine - a very simple trick - and ended up overrotating for a triple-cork in a total mind lapse, I went up in the air, got lost - which had never happened to that extent - landed completely on my back and felt a complete explosion.
Brown had broken four vertebrae in his back and was flown to the nearest hospital in France, where he underwent emergency back surgery.
“No one spoke English in the hospital, so people were going back and forth with doctors to ensure I was receiving the correct surgery,” Brown said. “My wife was talking with our team to coordinate all of this translation because if they were to fuse my vertebrae, I would never regain motion in my back again.”
Fortunately for Brown, a well-respected surgeon was passing through the hospital for a few months and was able to secure 10 screws and two rods into Brown’s back to stabilize it on five levels.
“My team at Red Bull got in touch with Wings for Life and made sure I was getting the right surgery, the right help and the right resources,” Brown said. “The type of surgery I needed and the type of injury I sustained was similar to what Wings for Life sees with spinal cord injuries, so knowing I had them in my corner helping me make the right decisions was extremely valuable.”
Bobby Brown has 10 screws and 2 rods stabilizing his spine
© Courtesy of Bobby Brown
10 days later, Brown boarded a flight back to the US under his own power and began the recovery process in Santa Monica with the Red Bull performance team.
Brown initially had negative thoughts floating in his mind for the first five hours, but recalled his ability to bounce back from previous hardships and trusted the belief within him that he could complete his recovery successfully.
“I also had the best team around me, so there was no excuse to not try and return to healthy form again,” Brown said. “I wanted to ski, skiing is my life, it’s what brings me the most joy, and I wasn’t going to let this injury take that away.”
But there were also dark days where Brown’s wife, brother, and family needed to help lift his spirits and realign his focus.
No one else is going to have you wake up and do the things that need to be done. Obviously you need the support, but it came down to me not letting the injury keep me down. That’s the first step to squashing all the negative things in your mind - waking up everyday knowing things will get better, that the hardship won’t last.
Day after day, Brown improved. He began to witness the results himself, building momentum, until one day, his recovery journey was complete.
“Somehow in four to five months, we were able to remove all the hardware from my back and I was able to ski again,” Brown said. “It was an insane recovery that I pushed really hard for because I wanted to keep skiing and wanted to get my mobility back.”
While Brown’s been back on the slopes for a few years now, he’s also been able to pay it forward - sharing the importance of Wings for Life’s work by becoming a passionate advocate.
“Being part of the Wings for Life World Run and getting the word out about it is something that now hits close to home,” Brown said. “I know a lot of people affected by spinal cord injuries and I’ve seen firsthand how challenging people’s lives become after dealing with these injuries. But to know there’s hope out there and a team of people dedicating their lives trying to cure spinal cord injuries - it's a powerfully inspiring thing.”
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