In March last year, in a devastating split second, Alex McKinnon’s life changed forever. The 23-year-old National Rugby League player went from a supreme athlete on the cusp of greatness to a broken man, battling like never before just to stay alive. What upended Alex’s world was an illegal and sickening tackle. The Newcastle Knights player was dumped on his head during a match against the Melbourne Storm. He had no way of protecting himself. Alex was instantly paralysed and is now a quadriplegic. We demand toughness and brutality in our footy codes – in fact, the bigger the hits, the louder we cheer. But we never think injuries like this can happen. This Sunday on 60 Minutes, for the first time Alex McKinnon and the people closest to him share their remarkable story of how they’re using love to save his life.