Age no barrier for wheelchair racer, 70, on Jane’s charity run

Though he has been in and out of wheelchairs since he was eight, when he was left temporarily paralysed by polio, Mr Scrace-Walters has never taken part in a road race.

His first foray will be the Jane Tomlinson Leeds 10k event on Sunday July 8 when he will take part alongside his trainer Alan Rayment, an experienced wheelchair athlete who had both legs amputated in 1997 due to leg ulcers and MRSA.

Mr Scrace-Walters credits Mr Rayment for inspiring him to take on a serious fitness regime just a few months short of his 70th birthday.

“I was thinking what I could do to celebrate my 70th birthday when I heard a presentation by Alan Rayment, who I contacted and who is now my coach and mentor. I was impressed by what he had done in his wheelchair. I thought that if he can do all that then maybe I can do a bit. I asked him to coach me.”

Mr Scrace-Walters, a retired butcher from Scunthorpe, gets training tips from Mr Rayment, who is the gym manager at North Lindsey College.

“I have been using the upper body equipment and weights. I am becoming like Arnold Schwarzenegger,” he joked.

“For me the 10k is a ‘fun run’. As long as I complete it, even if it takes two hours or five hours. I am raising money for Marie Curie Cancer Care.”

Mr Rayment admits being apprehensive about the forthcoming 10k.

“I’m nervous for him because it is not easy racing in a wheelchair. It’s a borrowed chair, which is really narrow and we have work to do on his balance, which is the biggest challenge in the chair as the front end comes up.

“I am not yet sure he will be able to cover 10k. It is a matter of technique and getting into a momentum and making the road surface work for you. And if I remember Leeds there are a couple of hills.”

Mr Rayment, who is 36, has many races under his belt, with his most recent 10km completed in 32 minutes.

It will take the pair much longer than that on July 8, he concedes.

“I think we will do it in one hour and 15 minutes.”

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