Less than a year after getting a new kidney, Stephen was back in the saddle – and on the podium at the British Transplant Games.
Winning bronze at the 2017 Games, staged at Strathclyde Park, was a remarkable achievement – but he isn’t resting on his laurels.
Stephen (right) with Dad Willem and some of the trophies he has won.
Instead, he is preparing to compete in a tough time-trial race through Johnstone.
That event, on October 14, will mark another welcome milestone on his recovery.
But Stephen admits his determination to get back on his bike could have had tragic consequences.
He said: “I think I rushed it. My expectations were too high.
“No-one gave me any advice to say I was coming back too quickly. I nearly killed myself.”
Stephen insists that, after a six-month break at the start of this year, he is in a much better place and ready to compete in the time-trial, which will be run in conjunction with the Johnstone Wheelers and is open to both juvenile and adult riders.
For more information on the event, visit Return to Life on Facebook.
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