– The doctors said I was going to die three times – NRK Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule

– The doctors said I was going to die three times.

Last autumn, the alarm went off when 22-year-old Sigurd Tjalveson Sørheim suddenly fell seriously ill. Voldingen was training in his home village when he was transported by ambulance helicopter to Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen.

– My parents had to drive six hours to Bergen. They were told that when they arrived, I was most likely dead.

The 22-year-old hovered between life and death and was immediately put into an artificial coma when he arrived in Haukeland. The pressure in the brain was great and he had a lot of fluid in the brain after blood vessels had burst in the brain.

The doctors informed those closest to them that Sigurd was most likely not going to survive one of the first operations when they were supposed to reduce the pressure in the brain.

– But I didn’t die then either.

Then came new discouraging news.

Sigurd had to undergo another complicated operation to remove the tumor in his brain.

– They said: “Now Sigurd is most likely to die”.

– But I’m still sitting here. It takes a little to die, he says.

Back in the hall: – Here I thrive

The tumor turned out to be benign, but when he woke up after five days in a coma, he could barely move his fingers. He remembers nothing from the first three weeks after the incident.

Now he has learned to walk again.

Half a year after the life-threatening drama, the 22-year-old, who is one of Norway’s best table tennis players, was granted leave from the rehabilitation center to attend the NM week in Lillehammer.

– I’m not here as a player, but I’m there as a team manager because it’s fun to be part of the environment.

He continued:

– It is in the hall that I grew up. This is where my friends are and this is where I enjoy myself.

It is the first time the table tennis talent is back at a sports event after the brain haemorrhage.

– I think it’s nice to see when others are enjoying themselves even if I’m not playing. It gives me joy to see others having fun with table tennis.

– It is very, very gratifying to have Sigurd back in the hall. I think everyone in the hall greatly appreciated that Sigurd is back in the environment. It has been hard for everyone, especially Sigurd, says teammate Lars Rønneberg.

– The whole club played for Sigurd

As a 13-year-old, Sørheim won NM gold in the 17-year-old class, five years after he started table tennis, inspired by the boy next door.

– I used to play with the neighbor, but when I was eight years old he was always away and he came home with nice prizes. Then I also wanted to start playing table tennis. Then I just kept going and that has become my life.

He represents Fornebu and the club prepared to present a protocol of condolence in the clubroom when he became seriously ill. Instead, the team manager took the step up onto a NM podium together with his teammates.

Fornebu 1 took NM gold ahead of Fornebu 2, with Sigurd on the bench as team manager for Fornebu 2.

– I think the whole club played for Sigurd. Everyone has Sigurd on their mind all the time, says Rønneberg, who played at Fornebu on 1.

– It’s hard not to be like before

The 22-year-old, who was also operated on for the serious condition intestinal loop just six months before the brain haemorrhage, does not hide that it has been challenging months since his life was turned upside down.

– It is hard not to be like before. You wake up and you are actually a completely different person. It was a very strange feeling. The heaviest adversity is that I am not the same as before, without any warning.

– There have been a few days that have been terrible, but for the most part it has gone well for me. It is important to have friends around you. I am still the same person and that is what is most important to me, he continued.

In recent months, he has been in hospital or a rehabilitation centre. Now he is looking forward to moving home to Volda to continue his rehabilitation at Sunnmøre.

– I don’t know how it will be in the future, but I hope it will be quite normal. I want to be part of society, so I have to learn things again. I have no choice.

At the same time, the days back in the table tennis environment together with his best friends have given him motivation to fight his way back to the sport and play table tennis at a high level again.

– I want to go back. It has given me further inspiration to be at the NM.