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We want to tell you a story about James Simpson: from Afghanistan to RLWC2021.
A thread on #ArmedForcesDay2020
A thread on #ArmedForcesDay2020
11 years ago, @BritishArmy Soldier James and his team were in Afghanistan when they were asked to visit a local village in the desert – a place where locals who weren’t fighting went.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
After a positive encounter, where they provided food to the locals and set up a medical clinic, who showed their thanks in an exchange for tea, the team walked back through the village – but the Taliban spotted them, and engaged.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
To leave, the team had to go through a ditch, where metal detectors didn’t detect anything. James was the 7th soldier to climb through the ditch, where an IED exploded after stepping on it.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He doesn’t remember the explosion. He woke up 10 metres away with his ears ringing, coughing from the dust and with the taste of sand in his mouth.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
A helicopter was sent out and they landed around 100m away after securing a landing site that was safe. He was then given pain-relief and put under general anaesthetic.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
James woke up 12 days later in Birmingham surrounded by his parents and older sister. He knew that he had lost his legs; he had accepted that in the helicopter.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He was in hospital for 10 weeks – he had gone from being 100% active, running around the desert, to not being able to sit up, feed or wash. He also lost three fingers and all the muscle in his right forearm.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
Rehab started in January 2010 at Headingley Court in Surrey. He thought it would be hell, he walked in to see ex-soldiers doing press ups with one arm.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He was there for six weeks solid, then spent time at home, before returning to Headingley Court. This process lasted three years.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He eventually went back to his Army base in Catterick where his old unit adapted a room for him and he helped with various elements in the training base – he was back in the Army, back to normality.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
As a school boy, James played Rugby League and was a huge @LeedsRhinos fan. He stopped watching when he was in the Army but in 2014, he bought a season ticket for the famous South Stand and was a regular at Headingley.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He went to one game at Leeds and saw a couple of people raising money for the Foundation and this is the first time he had seen that wheelchair rugby league existed.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
Although he was starting to run on his prosthetics on tracks, he missed the comradery of a team and the atmosphere of being part of a group, so he decided to go to a training session with the Leeds Rhinos Wheelchair team.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He loved it – although it was mainly a bit of fun to start with, the game has grown significantly since he started.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He is now a senior @England_RL wheelchair rugby league player with an eye on playing at RLWC2021.
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
As RLWC2021 wheelchair ambassador, he’s helped deliver CreatedBY RLWC2021 small grants to community clubs across England…
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
He’s talked about the great game of wheelchair rugby league to people cross the country...
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
Played a key role in the RLWC2021 draw at Buckingham Palace earlier this year...
#ArmedForcesDay2020
#ArmedForcesDay2020
