Better Health 34 ENG

+++++ The Case
Netipong “James” Srithong was just six years old when he went
golfing with his father for the first time. He started training
seriously for competitive golf at age twelve and qualified to join
Thailand’s national golf team at age seventeen. Because of his athletic
gift and determination, James always scored high. When he became
a member of the national team, he practiced even harder and dreamed of
one day becoming a professional golfer.
But eight months before going to Myanmar for the SEA Games, James
slipped and fell. He suffered a severe arm injury, breaking it in several
places. “It was as if my dream collapsed right in front of me,” he says.
Because success
is not coincidental
Netipong Srithong
chooses only the best
Golf is his life
“My father is a judge, and he likes playing golf,” James recalls. “I
always went with him to the course. At first, it was just for fun. Then,
I competed in tournaments and met lots of other golfers with whom I
became friends with. When my game got better, I entered more and more
tournaments. I got into the national team when I was in eleventh grade.”
“I practiced a lot during that time,” James recalls. “I was barely at
school because I attended golf training camp every month. We got up
early, went running at 7 am, and practiced driving until evening to
prepare ourselves for the SEA Games in Indonesia.”
This national athlete’s life seemed to run smoothly. James practiced
nonstop, even when he started college at the Faculty of Law, Thammasart
University. “I dreamed of becoming a successful professional golfer,” he says.
“I wanted to play on the European Tour like Thongchai Jaidee and
Kiradech Apibanrat, who both played on the national team before going pro.”
When your dream seems to fade, “give up” or “move on”?
Around the end of 2013, James was scheduled to attend a tournament
at the 27th SEA Games in Myanmar. But in April that year, he suffered
a huge setback. “I went to Nakhon Sri Thammarat with my family to
make merit,” recalls James. “I wasn’t careful and slipped and fell down
some high steps. My elbow hit the ground extremely hard. At first, my
arm was numb, and I couldn’t move it. I wasn’t sure if I had broken it
until my father took me to the hospital. But I didn’t have the operation
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