Auburn gymnast Samantha Cerio may have broken both knees, but that’s didn’t stop her from walking down the aisle to get married!
The 22-year-old graduate was able to enjoy her wedding on her feet only two months after breaking both of her knees and tearing ligaments in both knees during the NCAA Regional Semifinal in Baton Rouge. The horrific injury, which happened during Cerio’s first floor exercise pass in the tournament, ended her gymnastics career.
But the setback hasn’t discouraged the athlete and aerospace engineering major, who already lined up a job in Seattle at Boeing before she graduated in May.
It also didn’t discourage Cerio from enjoying her wedding to Trey Wood. The couple was married at Alabama’s Fairhope Yacht Club earlier this week, and Cerio shared photos from their outdoor wedding — including a shot of her walking down the aisle.
“I got the Wood
#GettingTheW #ShipFaced,” she cheekily captioned the series of photos on Instagram.
RELATED: Auburn Gymnast Who Broke Knees Says She Has ‘Many Positive Things Coming Up’: a ‘Small Setback’
She included a shot of her friends on the beach, the bridal party enjoying some wine, and a video of herself and Wood cutting the wedding cake. Cerio was also able to enjoy her first dance and to dance with her father at the wedding, according to photos shared by one of her guests.
Walking down the aisle had been a goal the sports star set for herself as soon as she awoke from surgery.
“She wants to walk down the aisle and get married, and we’re hoping she can do that,” Cerio’s coach, Jeff Graba, told NBC News.
RELATED: Teen Paralyzed in Gymnastics Accident Walks Across Graduation Stage
“I’m really excited just because I have so many positive things coming up,” Cerio told Today after her accident. “I mean, this is a small setback, but it’s …just another thing to get through. … Even though that was my last gymnastics meet, everything we do, everything I have done and trained for … has always been for my team. Just knowing that I have their support behind me.”
She also urged people not to tag her in the viral video of her injury.
“Going through the pain and seeing my knees bent unnaturally in real life was horrible enough, but to continue to see it from videos/pictures because some people feel entitled to repost it is not okay,” she said on Twitter. “I have family, friends and teammates who do not need to see me getting injured over and over again.”
“My pain is not your entertainment,” she added.
RELATED: Auburn Gymnast Breaks Both Knees Attempting a Blind Landing: ‘Nothing Ever Goes as Planned’
Cerio kept a positive attitude, even days after her injuries.
“Friday night was my final night as a gymnast. After 18 years I am hanging up my grips and leaving the chalk behind,” she said in a post shortly after the accident. “I couldn’t be prouder of the person that gymnastics has made me to become.”
“It’s taught me hard work, humility, integrity, and dedication, just to name a few. It’s given me challenges and roadblocks that I would have never imagined that has tested who I am as a person. It may not have ended the way I had planned, but nothing ever goes as planned.”
from PEOPLE.com http://bit.ly/2wJf380
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