Rich Copson, 32, uses crutches to walk but is planning to take on challenges including abseiling, sailing and kayaking this summer to help improve accessibility to extreme sports for disabled people.
He is also volunteering at fundraising events such as Muscular Dystrophy UK’s Leicester Town and Gown 10k on March 4th, as well as planning to raise £10,000 by taking part in accessible events such as Parallel London.
Rich has Becker muscular dystrophy, which causes muscles to weaken over time.
He said: “I was diagnosed with Becker at the age of 16. At the time I was quite fit, and well and then I began to have difficulties walking and general mobility issues. Everyone else my age was getting fitter and stronger and I wasn’t. I was having to stop doing things that I loved, like football and tennis.
“Over that period of time, I struggled with my physical and mental health and it took me to quite a dark place. I didn’t want to get involved with anything, and I wasn’t open about my condition.
“I got a lot of support from Muscular Dystrophy UK. A lot of people don’t realise that muscular dystrophy affects lots of different people, young and old, in lots of different ways. I’ve learned a lot from the charity about the impact that it can have on young children. They and their families are a massive inspiration.
“The fundraising I do now is not really for me. I’ve got Becker and I expect to live with it, but I want to help families with children who have more life limiting muscle-wasting conditions. They are facing potentially the early loss of a child and they need that support. They are a massive inspiration.”
He encouraged Leicester residents to join him in volunteering at the Muscular Dystrophy UK Leicester Town and Gown 10k, or to run the race, which costs £16 to enter, themselves.
Rich said: “I try and get involved in all the big things throughout the year, raising funds myself for the things I can do and supporting others who are taking part in the things I can’t. I’ve set myself a £10,000 target for this year.
“The first time I did Parallel London in 2015 I walked 5k on my crutches, which was a real struggle. It took weeks to recover from it, but I raised £3,000.
A lot of people put their energy into the gym, but I think why not transfer it into something even more rewarding, like raising money for a great cause and getting involved in an event with hundreds of other runners?
“Leicester is my home town and there’s something iconic about Victoria Park to me, so for people to be able to run around it on this event I think is amazing. I volunteered last year to hand water out to the runners and it was great. There was a brilliant sense of community, and the volunteers were well looked after, with food and all sorts.”
In September, Rich, who fundraises on social media under the name @themdfighter, will take on some extreme sports in the Lake District with the help of the Calvert Trust, which arranges adventure holidays for disabled people.
The trip will see him abseiling into a quarry, as well as using a zip wire, sailing, kayaking, and completing a high ropes course.
He said: “I’ll be completing different adventure sports that are being made accessible for disabled people. With conditions like mine, you perhaps don’t have a chance to do things that are a bit risky or dangerous. You can’t go to the gym and work out because your body isn’t like everyone else’s and you’ll probably do more harm than good.
“This event has enabled me to feel the benefits of exercise with the knowledge that I’ve got people supporting me, and prove to other disabled people that they can do it too.”
https://www.townandgown10k.com/leicester/