A paralysed pregnant woman wearing a bionic suit has completed the Great North Run five days after she started it.
Claire Lomas, from Leicestershire, was paralysed from the chest down in a riding accident in 2007, which left her with a fractured neck, dislocated back, fractured ribs, a punctured lung and pneumonia.
The 36-year-old, who is 16 weeks pregnant, began the half-marathon, which runs from Newcastle to South Shields, on Wednesday and crossed the finish line at about 10am on Sunday.
Lomas told the Guardian that she had suffered from morning sickness during much of her training and had had to seek medical attention for sores caused by the straps of her suit. “I haven’t had much sleep. I spent the first two nights worrying that I wouldn’t be able to make it,” she said.
The former event rider was offered a place in the Great North Run after being refused an official place in the London Vitality 10k. Wearing a ReWalk robotic exoskeleton, which she raised around £50,000 to buy, Claire walked around three miles each day assisted by her husband Dan, visiting schools en route to talk to children about her battle to overcome her injuries.
The ReWalk exoskeleton was developed by ReWalk Robotics in Israel to enable paraplegic people to stand upright, walk and climb stairs. Powered by a backpack battery, it relies on motion sensors to help the wearer lift their legs.
“I’ve always liked personal challenges,” she said. “I wanted to raise money because I saw a lot of people worse off than me in hospital with neck injures, who weren’t getting as much support.” To date, Lomas has raised around £560,000 for the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation.
Lomas, who gave birth to her first child, Maisie, in March 2011, says that staying as active as possible is good for people who have suffered spinal injuries. “It’s good for your health, anyway, whether you are [an active person] or not and then there are the mental [health] benefits to it, too,” she said.
In April 2012, she completed the London Marathon in 17 days using the robotic suit. The organisers usually require participants to finish the marathon within 24 hours, but they allowed Lomas to walk two miles a day for 17 days.
“[The Great North Run] has been the toughest by a long way,” said Lomas. “The London marathon took me 17 days and I did this in five, and it’s hilly.” Although she hasn’t calculated the total amount she has raised from the run, she estimates that it will be around £20,000.
Olympic distance-running champion Mo Farah, who finished the run in first place for the third year running, congratulated Lomas, describing her as an inspiration.
“It’s pretty amazing,” he said. “What she went through and then to finish the Great North Run. I want to congratulate her, this is what the Great North Run needs. To have the courage to be able to compete is amazing.”
Paralysed, pregnant Claire Lomas finishes Great North Run in five days
