Ballet dancer jumps onto subway tracks to save man from oncoming train

Many superheroes wear tights. Could this be because their secret identities are not necessarily reporters or wealthy philanthropists, but ballet dancers?

On a recent Saturday night, 31-year-old Gray Davis, a professional dancer with American Ballet Theater, had just watched his wife (Cassie Trenary, also a dancer) perform at the Metropolitan Opera House. He had not danced in the performance, as he was recovering from a herniated disc.

The New York City resident was waiting with his wife and mother to catch the subway home when they saw an altercation developing. At his wife’s urging, Davis went to seek help but couldn’t find any authorities. Upon his return to the platform, Davis and his family saw the fight escalate as one person pushed another onto the tracks.

Reportedly, a 23-year-old suspect, who has since been arrested and charged with assault, pushed the 58-year-old man onto the tracks. The victim suffered head lacerations and was unconscious. To make matters even more dangerous, a train was due to arrive at any moment. What happened next shocked everyone, including Davis’s wife and his mother, who wrote a post about it shared by the American Ballet Theater on Facebook.

Although there were two platforms full of frantic bystanders, nobody moved to help the unresponsive man. So Davis took the leap from the platform down to the tracks and lifted the injured man to safety.

“My son has always made me proud,” wrote Janie Krabbe B. LeTourneau, Davis’s mother, “but I’ve never been as proud of him as I was tonight, out of 2 full platforms of people, he was the only person brave enough to jump down and save that man’s life.”

Davis was met with cheers as he climbed back onto the platform, herniated disc and all. The following Monday, he was honored at ballet rehearsal.

Thank god for everyday (especially athletic) heroes.

[h/t: Huffington Post]