NHL legend Jaromir Jagr was involved in a serious crash yesterday on the streets of Prague, Czechia, while driving his brand-new Kia EV6.
The 1991 and 1992 Stanley Cup champion was trying to cross the busy Plzeňská four-lane street but failed to notice a tram approaching at high speed from his left. The streetcar smashed into the Kia EV6's driver's door, destroying it completely and triggering the side curtain airbag.
Fortunately, the 50-year-old athlete, who still plays competitive hockey in his home country, emerged without serious injuries from the crash and no one riding the tram was hurt either.
Looking at the driver's door of the EV6, it's amazing that Jagr walked away unharmed. The electric crossover received five stars in Euro NCAP crash testing and, in a strange coincidence, the result was announced on May 25, the same day Jagr had his crash.
Despite emerging unscathed from the crash, the experience left him shaken. "I thought it was my end," he confessed in a post on social media in which he took full responsibility for the crash. Here's how he explained what happened on his Instagram, where he also included a photo of his crashed Kia EV6 (machine translated from Czech).
"Dear fans, and everyone else. I would just like to tell you briefly what happened today when I was involved in the accident. It was my mistake.
On Plzeňská, I tried to cross from one direction to another. I checked the other side and drove into it at the right time. But there was a lot of traffic and I didn't have time to react to the tram, which was going at high speed in the same direction as me. I noticed it half a meter in front of me, at the last minute. I thought it was my end.
I have always believed that force majeure has a hand over me, and today I have seen it again. Thank God!"
He added that the Kia saved his life and he wanted to move on from the "sad event," thanking everyone who intervened at the scene.
According to the Czech news website Blesk, Jagr slightly injured one of his hands and was seen limping while leaving the ambulance. However, he declined a ride to the hospital. Local police performed a breathalyzer test on the spot and the result came back negative.
