At 18, Flint Hill senior Bensten Schone is preparing for cross-country season after years of rehabilitation from a severe brain injury. His recovery began after a January 2015 crash: Schone was six when a car struck him as he sledded with his sister near their McLean, Virginia, home. He fractured his skull, suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and spent more than two weeks in a medically induced coma as doctors worked to relieve swelling in his brain.
Local reports documented the circumstances of the crash and its immediate aftermath. According to TODAY, Schone was airlifted to Inova Fairfax Hospital. NBC Washington reported that he was sledding on a steep driveway in the 7000 block of Matthew Mills Road, across the street from his home, when he slid into a passing car. When he opened his eyes after the coma, his family feared he might never talk or walk again, The Washington Post reported.
TODAY reported that doctors did not expect Schone to walk again. He later recalled their prognosis: “They didn't think I would walk again.” His rehabilitation involved rebuilding abilities many people take for granted.
Relearning How to Walk, Speak and Live
Schone went through round-the-clock physical and occupational therapy to relearn how to stand, walk, pick up objects and use the bathroom, according to the same TODAY account. A speech therapist taught him how to enunciate words and string together sentences again. He also received rehabilitation at MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital and later continued as an outpatient at MedStar's McLean location, Connection Newspapers reported, with therapists first focused on teaching him to swallow again, sit up, and speak.
At age 7, Schone walked onstage with his parents, Heather and Lance, at MedStar National Rehabilitation Network's 30th Anniversary Gala to accept a Victory Award, the outlet's report noted. By the time he returned to school full time, he faced learning difficulties and was placed in a special education program, per TODAY. Even now, the station reports, Schone continues to experience learning challenges eleven years after the accident, though he is thriving overall.
Long-Term Effects and School Support
A 2015 review of moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injuries in children says physical, cognitive, emotional and behavioral effects may remain evident for years, though that general finding does not predict any individual survivor’s course, according to the PubMed Central-hosted review. For students with traumatic brain injury, the PROGRESS Center at the American Institutes for Research advises schools to adjust expectations and support as needs change. That general guidance does not establish what services Schone received, according to the PROGRESS Center tip sheet.
Finding a Sport That Fit
Running became a sport Schone could pursue after contact sports such as football and basketball were ruled out because of his brain injury, TODAY reported. He became Flint Hill's top varsity boys' cross-country runner; FHS View documented his role at a 2024 Homecoming meet. His mother has called him the fastest runner at his school, according to the Inova Health Foundation, which also reported that he placed second in the 2025 StarKid 5K at age 17.
An Inova newsroom post in August 2026 revisited Schone's rehabilitation and reported that he was preparing for his senior year while planning to continue running cross country in college. TODAY reported that he has an offer to run at the collegiate level; neither report identifies the school that extended it or says whether he has accepted. Inova also noted that Schone's story had drawn a national TODAY feature.
A Sister's Full-Circle Journey
One detail stands out among the family's story: Schone's older sister, who was sledding with him the day of the accident, went on to become a nurse at Inova Fairfax Hospital, the same hospital where her brother once lay in a coma, according to TODAY's reporting. The family's path from that January afternoon in 2015 to the hospital hallways she now works in traces an arc few families experience.
Schone's recovery also drew outside attention in the weeks after the crash. The Washington Post reported in February 2015 that the Washington Capitals sent well wishes to the young fan as he recovered from the sledding accident. That early flood of community support set the stage for a recovery that would stretch across more than a decade of therapy, setbacks and small victories.
