Wheelchair-Fencer, Dimitri Coutya took on Tough Mudder on Saturday in aid of disabled children in Africa.

On Saturday 24 September, ParalympicGB fencer Dimitri Coutya, took part in the West Sussex Tough Mudder challenge. Arms, legs and wheels took on the gruelling SAS-style military course together with 10,000 others.

18-year old Dimitri returned from the Rio 2016 Paralympic games just days before the event, completing 95% of obstacles with the help of his 18 team-mates. The T4 Paraplegic left his custom-made wheelchair to plunge into ice cold water, scale 10’ walls, crawl through mud under barbed wire and be carried through live electric wires.

Dimitri tells us: “[Spectators] were surprised – they obviously never dreamed of something like this happening, let alone seeing it.”

The Paralympian and his team hope to raise £5000 to support the work of AbleChildAfrica, a London based charity working with some of the world’s most vulnerable disabled children. Funds raised will ensure that sport is available to those the charity supports. There is still time left to donate by texting ‘MUDD14 £10’ to 70070 or via this link: http://tinyurl.com/acatough.

Dimitri Coutya, says: “Sport has [played] a big part in increasing my confidence and giving me things to push…towards in life, so the opportunity to…do the same for disabled children in Africa was something I instantly enjoyed the thought of taking part in.”

Anne Wafula- Strike (ex-GB wheelchair Paralympian and Patron of AbleChildAfrica) first completed Tough Mudder in 2013, and was part of this years team, says: “We’re raising funds for AbleChildAfrica, a very small charity that is supporting people living with disability to be included in the community. That’s why we decided to go through pain, [to] create awareness of what it’s like to be disabled in Africa.”

Mark Bullock (former Wheelchair Tennis manager for International Tennis Federation and member of the International Paralympic Committee and Paralympic Games Committee) says: “When Dimitri lost grip on the wet monkey bars and plunged into the water his immediate reaction was ‘Again, again’.”

AbleChildAfrica, a UK-based charity empowering disabled children in Africa. They are the leading UK charity working exclusively with and for disabled children in Africa. Around 15% of the world’s population is disabled, that’s 1 in every 7 people. Of those, approximately 80% live in developing countries and 150 million are children. Just last year, AbleChildAfrica reached 5,000 children. For more information please contact 0207 793 4144 or savraj@ablechildafrica.org.uk.

A family will be embarking on the challenge of a lifetime to raise money for a cause close to their hearts. 

But this will be no ordinary ascent. Iain has a condition called Friedreich’s Ataxia, which he was diagnosed with at the age of nine. It is a degenerative disease that primarily affects the nervous system and the heart, meaning that Iain is in a wheelchair.

He will be undertaking the climb in a Mountain Trike, which allows people to steer using a lever drive, and it will be the first time that this has been attempted in a Mountain Trike.

They will follow the Rongai Route over seven to 10 days, which is the best route for wheelchair ascents.

The determined family are aiming to raise £10,000 which will be donated to Ataxia UK, who are carrying out a large amount of research into the condition.

Iain’s father Graham said: “I have done a couple of treks already to raise money for Iain’s charity and my two youngest sons wanted to take part in something so we planned, the three of us, to do Kilimanjaro.”

After making the decision to carry out the fundraiser, the family had been looking at different wheelchairs for Iain to use on an everyday basis when they spotted the Mountain Trike.

“Iain had a go and got on really well with it.

“To us the logic was that the next step was Kilimanjaro. It made perfect sense to us! It’s been absolutely brilliant.”

Once Iain got involved with training for the challenge, his proud Dad soon noticed how happy it made him.

“Ian’s been stuck at home most of the time.

“It’s given him a real boost to his confidence and a boost in his fitness levels because he’s got something to actually aim for.

“Before, it was very difficult for him to accept that he had his condition in all honesty.

“Our relatives have noticed how much his confidence has changed.

“Now his posture is there, his confidence is there.

“The whole point was to give him something to focus on and if we didn’t get to Kilimanjaro it wasn’t the be all and end all, but the fact that we are going is a bonus.”

Iain has been given the all clear by his cardiologist, who said that the climb would not affect his condition in a negative way.

“He’s more than happy to give us his blessing,” Graham said.

He has been training at David Lloyd’s Gym in Sidcup, who kindly reduced Iain’s membership costs for the year.

Iain has also been going to a specialist gym in Cambridge which works with people in wheelchairs and heading out in the evenings to get plenty of mileage in the Mountain Trike.

“We go out every Sunday,” said Graham.

“It’s just getting him to use the trike for longer and longer periods.

“We are aiming to get him to use the mountain trike for three hours.”

Graham is positive about the climb and what it has already done for them as a family.

“It’s great because it’s brought the four of us closer together in many ways as well.

“It’s given us all a common goal. The fundraising side is something the other two have been really enjoying.

“We have had a really great response.

“People have been really excited by it. Even down to complete strangers.

“The boys keep saying how organised I am in all this, which is unusual for me!

“It’s just us, it makes it better.

“As you get older they tend to drift away a bit, it’s nice for their old Dad!” To sponsor the Fryatt family for this incredible challenge, please visit www.virginmoneygiving.com/iainfryatt