Paralysed veteran in Everest handcycle expedition

A former British serviceman who was paralysed in a road traffic crash is attempting to become the first person to reach Everest Base Camp by handcycle, a charity says.

Ollie Thorn, from the Guildford area, will begin a two-week journey to Everest Base Camp on 18 April, travelling from around 3,000m (9,842.5 ft) to over 5,200m (17060.3 ft), where oxygen levels are reduced and conditions are extreme.

Ollie, who can only use his upper body as he is paralysed from the chest down, will be part of a team of six.

Funds raised will go to the charity Wings for Life, which is dedicated to finding a cure for spinal cord injury.

Ollie's life changed abruptly when he was involved in a crash while on leave from the British Army, where he had begun training to become an officer.

He was hit by a car pulling out while riding his motorbike, breaking over 40 bones and spending the following month in a coma.

Since completing rehabilitation, Ollie has rebuilt his life and taken on various endurance challenges.

He has competed in professional downhill ski racing using sit-skis and now works as a keynote speaker and disability inclusion specialist.

He is also a father of two children.

For Ollie, his expedition is driven not only by his ambition for endurance, but by a belief that a cure for spinal cord injury is within reach.

He said: "I want to show my little boy what is possible. And I now have a glimmer of hope that one day I will be able to walk my new born daughter down the aisle."

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