A County Durham cyclist who suffered a brain injury in a serious collision is aiming for Paralympic glory after winning a silver medal at the British Cycling National Track Championships last year.
Ben Hetherington, 26, was taking part in a time trial road bike race on May 23 2019 when he was involved in a collision with a car near his home in Sedgefield. He sustained injuries on his left-hand side including a broken wrist and fractured shoulder, but more seriously a traumatic brain injury.
An off-duty doctor came to Ben's aid immediately after the incident, but due to the seriousness of the injury, he was airlifted to James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough by the Great North Air Ambulance Service where he underwent surgery ahead of several months of mental and physical rehabilitation. He was then transferred to a specialist neurological rehabilitation hospital in Newcastle, Walkergate Park, eventually being discharged in January 2020 eight months after the collision.
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Immediately after the incident, Dr Dave Bramley of the GNAAS, said: "When we arrived on scene it was clear straight away that Ben had a really significant head injury and needed some advanced interventions to help decrease the severity of it. We gave him an anaesthetic and some medication to reduce the pressure on his brain and took him very quickly to a hospital with a neurological service."
Despite the lengthy recovery process and severity of the injury, Ben was determined to return to cycling and this year won a silver medal in the para C3 category 3k pursuit at the British Cycling National Track Championships. He said: "When I found out I got silver I was like, is this real?
"I couldn’t believe it, I picked up the phone and told everyone. I’m aiming to try and get in the Paralympic squad, so hopefully that will happen."
Ben and his family recently visited the GNAAS base near Eaglescliffe to meet Dr Bramley. He continued: " If it wasn't for Dave and the team I wouldn't be here today telling this story so I can't thank them enough. The more people that fundraise for GNAAS the better because it's such a needed service."
Dr Bramley added: "We were just blown away when we saw what Ben had managed to achieve with his cycling. From the time that we’d left him at the hospital we were very concerned that Ben wouldn't survive, and if he did, we expected him to have a very serious neurodisability as a result of his very severe injuries.
" It's just amazing to see how he is today and just knowing the amount of effort and determination he's shown to get to this stage through his rehabilitation is just really inspiring."
Last year, the Great North Air Ambulance Service had its busiest year on record, responding to 1,620 call-outs across the region. You can find out more and donate to the charity at the GNAAS website.
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