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Paralysed Woman Claire Lomas Nears Halfway Point In London Marathon After Seven Days

PA  |  Posted: 29/04/2012 18:01 Updated: 30/04/2012 15:02   PA

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Claire Lomas trains for the London Marathon in a bionic ReWalk suit in lanes near Hull.

A paralysed woman is more than halfway through her bid to tackle the London Marathon in a bionic suit.

Battling the rain and wind in the city today, Claire Lomas remained in high spirits as she crossed the Tower Bridge - the half way point for the 26-mile race.

TV presenter Gaby Logan and her husband former international rugby star Kenny joined the 32-year-old today for a mile of the race.

The couple, who have both appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, are among a number of celebrities to support Miss Lomas on the route.

Friends, family and members of the public cheered on the mother of one today as she crossed the bridge.

Lomas is the first person to attempt the marathon in a ReWalk suit.

Husband Dan, mother Joyce and 13-month-old daughter Maisie have been supporting her from the sidelines since she set off with thousands of others on 22 April.

Lomas, from Eye Kettleby, near Melton, was left paralysed from the chest down following a horse riding accident five years ago.

She broke her neck, back and ribs and punctured a lung when her horse Rolled Oats threw her off as she took part in the Osberton Horse Trials in Nottinghamshire in 2007.

Lomas is hoping to raise more than £50,000 for Spinal Research, a charity which funds medical research around the world to develop reliable treatments for paralysis caused by a broken back or neck.

The £43,000 RealWalk suit, designed by Israeli entrepreneur Amit Goffer, enables people with lower-limb paralysis to stand, walk and climb stairs through motion sensors and an onboard computer system.

Lomas is due to complete the race on 8 May.

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A paralysed woman is more than halfway through her bid to tackle the London Marathon in a bionic suit. Battling the rain and wind in the city today, Claire Lomas remained in high spirits as she cro...
A paralysed woman is more than halfway through her bid to tackle the London Marathon in a bionic suit. Battling the rain and wind in the city today, Claire Lomas remained in high spirits as she cro...
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tiggielijahscat
12 Fans
09:59 PM on 04/30/2012
just to say reading venta's post on here that there is no publicity for this lady claire. and yet one d member harry s. gets publicity for a new car. claire should be supported and a medal and a special welcome at the finish line. she is remarkable brave and for someone like me in pain walking on crutches i feel very humbled by her efforts.

please like venda said get the news on it 24/7 as a pride in britain as this is the first real news in ages. kim k. and what she eats for lunch or that she wears clothes is not news.
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Miggins
5 Fans
05:09 PM on 04/30/2012
Good on you, Clare! Especially your efforts yesterday when the fierce wind and icy rain kept the bravest of us indoors. Hope you make progress with your mobility in the future and well done for raising so much money for the spinal injuries cause. You are a brave, inspirational and determined lady!
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Venta
3 Fans
03:48 PM on 04/30/2012
I found this article by default - why isn't this woman featuring on daily broadcasts as to her progress? What a brave and determined heroine.
I've seen more coverage of the likes of Katie Price and one of her cast-offs Alex Reid; speculation about Dannii Minogue and Simon Cowell, and other, equally pointless celebrities, yet this is the first I personally have seen of this remarkable woman.
What a shameful shambles our 'press' is, when the likes of the above mentioned 'celebs' and nonentities get more prominence than someone of Claire Lomas's calibre.
I shall make a point of checking daily to follow your progress Claire, and wish you every success in this, and everything you do. Well done!
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kettlecharlie
18 Fans
03:53 PM on 04/30/2012
I commend you for this comment, Venta
and support your query.
Why indeed is there no daily report from HuffingtonPost?
If Claire Lomas reads this, then mest wishes from Scotland!
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Venta
3 Fans
04:31 PM on 04/30/2012
Thanks Charlie. Funnily enough, I went back through the Huff pages which were, as I said, full of nonentities (though there was a very heart-warming story about Harry Styles and his new car).
Out of interest, I checked both Sky and BBC news sites, and searched for Claire Lomas. All they came up with was some old news about the 'walk suit', and a snippet from a day or two before the marathon started.
I reiterate my earlier sentiments - what are we thinking of that Harry's Audi, takes precedence in the 'news' over the bravery and determination of this remarkable woman?
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Miggins
5 Fans
05:15 PM on 04/30/2012
Venta, well said! We live in a world where our own lives are deemed to be so empty and boring that we need to live vicariously through other people. What rot! Like you, I hate the shallow 'celebrity' articles in the papers. Why would I care if someone I've never heard of does something immoral and pointless? Sadly, stories like Claire's don't sell newspapers whereas Simon Cowell headlines sell like hot cakes. Says a lot about the times and what grabs the attention of the average person. Depressing.
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ormeborme
0 Fans
11:30 AM on 04/30/2012
Claire is indeed a very special lady. Her courage, bravery, determination, commitment, focus and warm joyful personality have always been hers but since her tragic accident in May 2007 she has ampified each and every one of these strengths. When she passes the finishing line, and she will, let us hope that the £50k for Spinal Research will be exceeded. Let us hope too that Claire's experiences over the Marathon course will enable the manufacturers and designers of the Re-walk/robot suit to continue with their excellent and essential work so that these suits will be available and affordable for all potential beneficiaries. B&S, France
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Miggins
5 Fans
05:18 PM on 04/30/2012
Good post. I second it!
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Mossiewee
7 Fans
10:50 AM on 04/30/2012
Well done. An amazing woman.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
lillian12130
36 Fans
08:55 AM on 04/30/2012
This is an example of why the honours medals, dame hoods and knighthoods should go to people like this lady not to pop stars or people who win running or cycle, or rowing races or just turn up for work in a bank
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Chew22
2 Fans
09:48 AM on 04/30/2012
Massively agree.
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Roger47
42 Fans
11:00 AM on 04/30/2012
There is nothing wrong with honours going to the sport stars or pop stars who do a huge amount for charities and some do. The bankers I agree with you.
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gyra7
5 Fans
08:38 AM on 04/30/2012
While it's good that we can praise this brave and determined woman, It would be great if we could all spare a couple of pounds for Spinal Research, which after all is why she is making this colossal effort.
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hearthammer
If left is right and right is wrong, decide!
261 Fans
08:22 AM on 04/30/2012
She should get a BIG gong at the next "honours" giveaway!
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t32eena
10 Fans
08:12 AM on 04/30/2012
this make you proud to be british
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mattydragon
10 Fans
07:48 AM on 04/30/2012
Being a vetran of 26 marathons whilst in the Army and then sustaning a broken back whilst on active service and not being able to walk or run any more I Know what Claire is trying to do. All I can say is my thoughts and support go with her every single centimeter/Inch that she runs. My support also goes out to Amit Goffer for developing this AMAZING Real Walk suit. Oh how I wish it was available when I was being taught to walk again.20 years on I can now walk again but oh how I wish I could be doing what Claire is doing GOOD ON YER CLAIRE.
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An Independent Woman
Honni soit que mal y pense
652 Fans
12:42 AM on 04/30/2012
The human spirit. It never ceases to amaze.
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waddytog
97 Fans
11:15 PM on 04/29/2012
i think you will find that it is Claire who is the "celebrity" here.
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scaranda
3 Fans
04:43 AM on 04/30/2012
Good call
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Cumbriabigyin
28 Fans
10:16 PM on 04/29/2012
Very brave with a determination not many will ever come near to... even if she had to stop now, she would still be an amazing person.
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ajwnet
1 Fans
09:00 PM on 04/29/2012
If you're going to copy and paste news items, at least check the facts first...
The product is called "ReWalk".
http://www.argomedtec.com/
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tankie5
0 Fans
11:33 AM on 04/30/2012
If you have nothing good to say about this amazing young woman then I suggest that you shut up and stop nit picking!
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ajwnet
1 Fans
10:22 PM on 05/01/2012
If you would take your head out of your a and stop trolling you might realise that being informed of the correct product and where to find out more about it may help others to benefit.
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jack2649
60 Fans
08:56 PM on 04/29/2012
Claire Lomas has a lot of guts, a very brave woman!
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