Connor Fields stopped breathing.

It was July 30, 2021, at the Tokyo Games, and the American BMX racer and then-defending Olympic gold medalist had just crashed in a semifinals race.

The wreck left him with blood pooled on the surface of his brain, a collapsed lung, broken ribs, torn shoulder ligaments, a torn bicep and an even more urgent matter.

“He even stopped breathing for a short time on the track and emergency crews had to open an airway,’’ according to a news release issued by the Craig H. Neilsen Rehabilitation Hospital in Utah, where Fields spent time during his neurological rehabilitation.

Almost three years after the crash, Fields, 31, will serve as a TV analyst for NBC during the 2024 Paris Olympics. He will be able to provide insight into not only the dangers of BMX competition, but also into how difficult it is for Olympic athletes to walk away from their careers.

Fields resumed training in 2022 despite doctors telling Fields he was at risk of permanent brain damage if he suffered another head injury.

He is prepared for something not all analysts will experience at the Paris Olympics.

“There's always a small piece of me that is like, 'Ah, these guys are lucky I'm not racing,'" Fields said. “You know what I mean?"

A mother's fear during recovery

Fields was in and out of consciousness during five days at a Tokyo hospital, and then was flown home to Henderson, Nevada. The extent of his brain injury and prospects for recovery were not fully known.

That would become more apparent during rehabilitation.

“One of the first exercises I was doing is they would give me three words -- tree, dog leaf,’’ Fields said. “Then I had to flip it around to leaf, dog, tree. And I could not do that.’’

Damage to his frontal lobe compromised his inhibition, Fields said. His mother, Lisa, said she was taken aback by her son’s cursing, something he’d never done in front of her before the accident.

“That was scary to me, because even if my son's physical capabilities had been somewhat diminished, what I was most concerned about was whether he would still be my son,’’ she said.

Before his brain and body had time to heal, his old instincts returned. Fields said he approached rehabilitation the same way he did competitive racing.

“If my therapist said, ‘Hey, do this exercise three times a day,' I did it ten," Fields said. “I was researching online things that I could do, so I changed my diet. I eliminated certain foods, I added certain foods. I found a hyperbaric chamber in town (and I) went every single day to a hyperbaric chamber.

“It became my entire life for that six months.’’

Doctors measured his cognitive functioning against the baseline for people the same age and education level. (While competing in BMX racing, Fields said, he got a degree in business management from UNLV.)

He still needed six additional months to recovery from his physical injuries. But cognitively, Fields explained, the doctors said he was fully recovered.

The challenge of walking away

The crash has had lasting impact, Fields said.

“I think anybody who goes through a near-death experience can relate to this,’’ he said. “I have a unique view of the fragility of life.’’

Yet after completing his rehabilitation, Fields said, he climbed aboard his BMX bike and began training, even though doctors warned him he was at risk for permanent brain damage if he suffered another head injury.

“People don't truly understand that in order to get to the Olympic level, let alone the Olympic medalist level, it is a 24-hour-a-day job for a decade,’’ Fields said. “And the commitment, the dedication that it takes to do that comes at a price.

“When you no longer have the motivating factor that controls every decision that you make throughout the entire day, it's a huge adjustment. There's a lot of stories of athletes struggling with it, turning to alcohol, turning to partying.’’

Fields said he didn’t want to rush the decision on his future in BMX racing.

But after a month, Fields said, he no longer felt the desire to train, or willingness to risk permanent brain damage.

He announced his retirement and set out to create a new life for himself. Fields said he wants people to know U.S. Olympians have access to mental health services for two years after they retire from competition through the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC).

He said he took advantage of that as he dealt with retirement.

“I had to face the challenge and figure out who I wanted to be in, I guess, my second chapter of life,’’ Fields said.

How has Connor Fields changed?

Field’s personality is not the same as before the crash his mother, Lisa Fields, said.

Which is to say her son is no longer the hyper-focused athlete who had little interest in things like emotions, Lisa explained, and she added that her son is more introspective.

“Just exploring feelings and allowing him to become more dimensional in that way,’’ she said. “He's got the luxury now of being able to get to know those parts of himself that he just didn't have the luxury before because he was so focused on what needed to be done.’’

Using mental health services available through the USOPC aided the process, Connor said.

“My entire life revolved around being an Olympic champion, professional athlete, sponsored athlete, pro BMX or cool guy,’’ he said. “And I had to basically reinvent myself, rediscover my identity.’’

So who is he now? Among other things:

A keynote speaker, something Fields began doing before the accident.

An ambassador for USA BMX who participates in coaching camps and clinics.

And a rookie Olympics analyst who’s been preparing for the Paris Games in the same fashion as before the crash.

“I'm doing all my homework trying to be the best commentator I can,’’ Fields said. “That's just part of my personality. I just only know how to do things one way, and that's try to do it the best I can.’’

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Connor Fields at 2024 Paris Games after crash almost killed him