From Sepsis to the Court: One Athlete’s Return to Tennis After Quadruple Limb Loss
Reading Time: 5 minutes
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Summary:
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Tennis pro Ron Rosas lost all four limbs to sepsis in 2023, three years before returning to competitive play.
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Ohio State surgeons preserved his right elbow joint specifically so he could keep swinging a racket.
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A custom prosthetic arm lets Rosas hold a racket through a rod built into the handle.
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He entered WC50 Quebec as a wild card in pursuit of a spot in the U.S. Open’s Quad division.
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Ron Rosas has been playing tennis since he was five. He continued playing throughout his school years, then went on to play professionally, coach, and raise a family of tennis players. But in December 2022, he contracted pneumonia, which advanced to sepsis, leading to the amputation of all four of his limbs in 2023. At the time, he worried he would never play the sport he'd loved all his life.
But three years later, at 55, Rosas could hold a racket again. In this article, we take a look at how surgical planning, custom prosthetic design, and a committed support team came together to help him recover from multiple limb loss and return to the tennis court.
From grief to hope
Sepsis is the body’s extreme reaction to an infection, which can severely restrict blood flow to limbs, sometimes requiring amputation to save a life. In Rosas’s case, when pneumonia worsened to sepsis, all four limbs were amputated.
At first, Rosas was told he might lose only his fingers and toes, but later, the risk expanded to his arms and legs. He told CBS Texas that he felt shock and grief when he received the news, and he hoped others wouldn’t experience the same.
For athletes hoping to return to sport, the location of amputation relative to the joints is crucial. This is because preserving the joints allows them to retain movement. For Rosas, preserving his right elbow was critical.
Surgeons initially indicated he might lose that joint, but he insisted on saving it to continue swinging a racket. Fortunately, Dr. Jason Souza of Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center successfully preserved his right elbow. Also, all four of his limbs were amputated below the joint.
Building a tennis arm
Developing a prosthetic arm for sports begins well before fitting; it typically begins during surgery when the residual limb is shaped. Laying a solid surgical foundation, Rosas’s surgeons improved his right residual arm by adding small muscles to provide control signals for a future prosthetic and rewired nerves to avoid phantom pain.
Then came the fitting. Rosas did his first round of prosthetic fittings in June 2023. With his family, physical therapist, and prosthetist present, he stood on his new legs for the first time. Initially, he could only stand with help and for short periods, but over the following weeks, he began moving around on his own with a walker.
By early 2025, Rosas was working on a specialized tennis prosthesis to keep the racket steady. This setup allows Rosas to swap his regular arm for the tennis-specific prosthesis, attaching the racket via a rod in the handle. In November 2025, he received a special socket that enabled him to hold the racket, and by February 2026, he was actively practicing, with increasing effort each week.
Rosas told the Dallas Morning News that gripping a racket with his prosthesis for the first time felt surreal.
Returning to the court, one step at a time
Rosas made his return to the court in November 2025, the first time since his surgery. Early in that comeback, he fell after taking a few hits and fractured his hip; however, he returned to play five weeks later.
He dedicated himself to recovery, working to adjust to his prosthetic limbs, build muscle, and restore his strength. CBS Texas notes that his support team includes coaches, family, and professional players like John Isner and Frances Tiafoe.
Rosas chose the quad division for his comeback, which is for players with both upper- and lower-limb impairments competing in wheelchair tennis. Since power chairs weren’t permitted, he expected to use a manual wheelchair, which he believes is probably more effective for court movement and ball reach, despite being more difficult for someone with upper-limb loss.
NBC 5 reports that in July, Rosas competed as a wild card in WC50 Quebec, moving closer to his goal of securing a wild card into the Quad division at the U.S. Open Wheelchair Championships in September. He stated his objective was to demonstrate that high-level competition is possible with upper limb loss and to promote greater awareness and inclusion.
Importance of a support system
Rosas attributes his recovery to faith, family, friends, and a mindset of gratitude. In a column published in the Dallas Morning News, he also emphasized the importance of having the right medical, psychological, and prosthetic teams.
Rosas’s journey back to the court—from the surgical choice to preserve his elbow joint, to designing a tennis-specific prosthetic arm, and finally to competing in quad-division events—illustrates a common pattern among athletes who rebuild their sport after losing multiple limbs: early decision-making, creating prosthetics tailored for specific activities rather than just everyday use, and maintaining a supportive network that remains involved long after surgery.
Related Reading:
How One Prosthetist Solved a Pro Athlete’s Biggest On-Field Challenge
Man With Double Leg Amputation Emphasizes Importance of Support Groups
Quadruple Amputee Chase Merriweather Has One Goal: Paralympic Gold
