ON A BRIGHT FALL Sunday in October, Damar Hamlin took the field for the Buffalo Bills. That he didn't play much-18 snaps, all coming on special teams duty- was beside the point. His being there at all was the stunning thing. Nine months earlier, Hamlin had collapsed on the field, right there on camera, during a Monday Night Football game. The night fell into a strange, echoing pause in the usually seamless operation of America's most inevitable cultural institution. Nearly 24 million people watched as Hamlin was taken off the field in an ambulance. The game was called off with viewers unsure of whether or not they had seen a man die on television. The next day, a sportscaster prayed live on ESPN. For a time, updates on his recovery were headline news. And now, here he was. Hugging teammates. in the tunnel before kickoff. Dapping up the trainer whose quick response had helped save his life. Dancing on the field during warmups, a young man glad to be playing the sport he loves. "To be able to still do what I love at the highest level in the world is amazing," he told reporters after the game.
It was quite possibly the most remarkable comeback in sports history. It was also a more interesting story than that.
I spent time with Hamlin this fall, and I found a warm, kindhearted young man doing his best to make sense of the strange turns his life has taken. He was glad to serve as the smiling face of a cause that, between heartbeats, chose him. But he was also ready to get back to being a football player, despite the obvious challenges, and to do everything within his power to make sure his collapse wasn't the only thing people know him for.
It isn't always easy. Recovery is not a linear process. And if fame comes with unique obligations, fame for this carries an even weirder burden. It can be hard, for instance, to predict how people will react to his presence.
This story is from the December 2023 - January 2024 edition of GQ US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the December 2023 - January 2024 edition of GQ US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
SHABOOZEY THE BIG SHA BANG
Shaboozey spent months at the tippy-top of the charts with a hit song about dealing with hard times the easy way: by hitting the bar. He sang on a couple songs with Beyoncé too. So we asked the one and only SHANIA TWAIN to help country's biggest new star make sense of his explosive year.
HANNAH EINBINDER BORN STANDING UP
With her star turn on Hacks, the comic turned actor has established herself as one of Hollywood's most exciting young talents-much to her own surprise.
Katt Williams The Man Who Opened The Portal
In January, the comic delivered an instantly iconic podcast interview that threw pop culture into crisis-and seemed to predict all manner of messy celebrity gossip to come. At home on his farm, Williams explains why he said what he said— and why he'd do it again, and again, and again....
JOHN DAVID & MALCOLM WASHINGTON A NEW HOLLYWOOD DYNASTY
The Washington brothers built their careers apart—until an irresistible project drew them together. In The Piano Lesson, they tackle a father's thorny legacy.
FUTURE & METRO BOOMIN'S HISTORIC Hit STREAK
What happens when the best rapper alive reunites with the hottest producer of the moment? You get a back-to-back-to-back run unlike any since the Beatles.
PHARRELL WILLIAMS Designer of the Year
Riding along from Paris to Hollywood to New York with the Louis Vuitton *men's creative director, whose prolific and often prophetic contributions to fashion, film, and music have once again thrust him to the center of the pop culture Venn diagram.
JOHN MULANEY. KID GORGEOUS GROWS UP
After immortalizing the whirlwind of the past four yearsrelapse, intervention, recovery-in his awardwinning standup special, John Mulaney has emerged as one of the most popular comedians on earth. For his next trick, he's embracing his surprising new role as a suburban dad.
DWAYNE JOHNSON THE WORLD'S BIGGEST Actor
It's hard for Dwayne Johnson to hide. Wherever he goes, there he is― as conspicuous out in the world as he is on the silver screen. But after two decades of playing a version of himself in huge movies, suddenly Dwayne Johnson is ready to do something entirely new: vanish.
How the WNBA Became the Most Fun, Complicated, and Exciting League in Sports
Caitlin Clark! A'ja Wilson! Angel Reese! This year, women's hoops emerged as a dominant popcultural force. But the road to sports-league supremacy has been long and winding. This is the inside story of how the W finally broke through.
A Companion for Your Wrist
Audemars Piguet's new release with artist Brian Donnelly, a.k.a. KAWS, brings high-art hype to the world of pop-watch collabs.
