Helenius had to resort to the hospital’s emergency room because of severe nervous symptoms.
Heavyweight professional boxer Robert Helenius, 40, says that he underwent surgery for neck problems. The successful neck surgery was performed in Helsinki on Wednesday.
Helenius says he has been suffering from ailments for years, but Anthony Joshua’s the knockout punch was the final clincher. Helenius was brutally knocked out by the former two-time heavyweight world champion last August in London.
Recently, Helenius has been tested both in and out of the ring: two tough knockout losses, a positive doping test and a divorce in less than a year and a half.
According to Helenius, the neck problems originate from the 2012 match Sherman Williams against. Known for his hard shell punch, Williams hit Helenius hard on the head with his bravura punch. Helenius won the match after full time with points.
– Since then, the neck has been bothering me many times after hard sparring and matches, but it has always improved. After the encounter with Joshua, the neck didn’t get any better. The nerve pains became unbearable and eventually the strength disappeared from the other hand, says Helenius.
– The nerve pain was left on the operating table, now I feel better and the joy of life is returning, the boxer rejoices.
Helenius’s cervical spine operations, head physician of the department of neurosurgery at HUS Jari Siironen the surgery went well and the prognosis for recovery is excellent.
– The decision on the cervical spine operation was correct and well justified in Helenius’ case. Long-lasting troublesome nerve pain and eventually progressive muscle weakness caused by nerve pressure required surgical treatment.
According to Siironen, Helenius was also in line with his series in the operating room. The operation required more time than a normal operation due to the boxer’s size.
– It was more laborious than normal to reach the area to be operated on between the brutal’s strong muscles. In addition to the muscles, Helenius was a heavy turnable in surgery, laughs Siironen.
According to Siironen, the operation performed on Helenius does not limit a possible continued boxing career or any other life.
Helenius still doesn’t want to make a final decision about the continuation of his career, despite his hard times.
– Now we have to get the rehabilitation done properly first. Then we’ll see how it feels to go up again. During a 27-year-long career, boxing has indeed been strongly built into the spinal cord.
Helenius faces several months of demanding rehabilitation and the investigation process of the doping case is still ongoing.
– I hope that will be resolved soon so that I can fight again. But let’s take one thing at a time.