Man with spinal injury to hand-cycle 250 miles across New ZealandRSS Feed

An ex-rugby player that suffers from a spinal injury is defying doctors that told him he would need round-the-clock care for the rest of his life by using a hand-cycle to travel across New Zealand.

David Millar suffered a spinal cord injury that left him paralysed 20 years ago in a rugby match, the Herald reports.

The 42-year-old will use his hand-cycle to travel 250 miles across the country and, by doing so, is hoping to raise thousands of pounds for a charity that supports injured rugby players called Hearts and Balls. Some of the money raised will go towards spinal injury research.

Speaking to the newspaper, Mr Millar said that, when he suffered his spinal injury, a cure seemed distant and progress has been slow.

"However, a number of treatments are on the verge of moving from the laboratory to clinical trials and as such are close to achieving one of the holy grails of medical science - the repair of the spinal cord," he added.

Earlier this month it was reported that English and Irish rugby legends are to take part in a charity match to raise money for rugby players paralysed through spinal injuries.

Serious Law, leading spinal cord injury solicitors.

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