From James Bond to Superman

From reel life James Bond to real life Superman. The journey of the indomitable Canadian Mike Nemesvary's life, sounds almost like a movie flick. At 15, he was sure of what he wanted to do with life: become the world's best freestyle skier. By 24, he was ranked third in the world, winning 10 Canadian and five British titles and three World Cups. He could do three somersaults and a double twist in just three seconds. His skiing skills had fetched him fame as a stuntman in some European movies, including the James Bond flick, "A View to a Kill."

But, everything changed in a split second in 1985, when at the heights of his skiing career at 24, during a routine workout on a trampoline, Nemesvary blacked out and landed on his neck, breaking the spinal cord, which paralysed him into a quadriplegic.

The initial moments were of total devastation, denial, anger and frustration. Even thoughts of suicide crossed his mind for some fleeting moments. "Why had God given me so much physical talent and control over my body, only to take away my physicality so quickly," he wondered often.

But, the accident could only broke his neck, not his spirit. It didn't take long for the athlete's spirit to reach out of the confines of his wheelchair. Probably because his sport had taught him gravity defying skills and ambitions of flying high.

It was this indomitable spirit that set him out on a mission to help not just himself, but millions like him worldover by driving around the world in a specially modified Chevrolet Blazer truck to raise awareness and funds for spinal cord injury (SCI) rehabilitation and research. A mission that began March this year, traversing more than 40,000 kilometres through hundreds of cities in 16 countries in four continents.

A mission called the 'Round the World Challenge (RWC), a registered charity, whose goal is to raise $10 million ($CND) to be administered in partnership with the Canadian Paraplegic Association.

A five-month mission that's taking him around the world -- to Ireland, Scotland, England, France, Switzerland, Germany, Turkey, Iran and Pakistan, and India, and Hyderabad last week -- visiting rehabilitation centers, research laboratories and other organizations and individuals representing people with disabilities.

He's seen the highs and lows all. The fast-paced independent glamourous lifestyle trimmings attached with a skiing champion, the thrill of flying high above the crowd, difficult gravity-defying maneuvers, on one hand. Total dependent on others for the most basic of human needs, disability on the other.

But, his life is full of goals and accomplishments, he says. He even became a certified scuba driver after the accident. "Ironically, the qualities that had allowed me to succeed in my sport have also allowed me to tackle my new life head-on. I was, and still am competitive, tenacious, intensely focused and fiercely goal-driven. The rules have changed, but the game goes on," he says on his Website, "www.roundtheworldchallenge.org," which posts the latest on the trip.

And he's fiercely trying to complete the latest goal of becoming the first quadriplegic to drive around the world, in his Ontario 564 NJL --"Yours to Discover" -- truck.

All in the hope that "one day I can ski like I used to before. Stand all my six feet tall."