A County Down family, who campaigned to allow assisted wheelchairs to be used in the LondonMarathon, are on course to complete their race
A County Down family, who campaigned for assisted wheelchairs to be allowed in the London Marathon, will soon complete their 50th marathon.David and Sandra Kerr campaigned for seven yearsSpeaking at the halfway mark in the race on Sunday, David said it was "phenomenal" to be there."No special treatment, just alongside everyone else enjoying a fantastic day out with people who love doing the same thing as us.
Also speaking while crossing Tower Bridge in London, his wife Sandra said the "atmosphere is absolutely amazing" and that they were overwhelmed by the support.25-year-old Aaron, from Annahilt near Hillsborough is non-verbal and has cerebral palsy, epilepsy and a chromosome disorder which means he uses a wheelchair.His mum Sandra began running as a coping mechanism when she was struggling with her mental health following Aaron's transplant.
A maximum of four support runners per participant can help, though only two can push the wheelchair at any one time. Before 2022, wheelchair participants had to complete the 26.2 miles from Greenwich to Westminster under their own power, with no assistance.Speaking before the race on Sunday, David said ever since then, "we knew we wanted to run London"."But we've been talking to London Marathon since then and in the last 10 months we've entered into their programme and we're here today.
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