RFU Injured Players Foundation member Liam O’Keeffe has climbed to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in a specially adapted wheelchair. The 36-year-old former rugby player has accomplished the extraordinary feat 10 years after he sustained a spinal cord injury while playing for St Mary’s Old Boys, Bristol.
In his quest to raise £50,000 for the Injured Players Foundation (IPF), O’Keeffe has trained for 18 months and pushed over 600 hours in his wheelchair to ready himself for the challenge.
After six days’ tackling gruelling climbs and treacherous terrain, the former rugby player reached the ‘roof of Africa’ alongside his father, uncle and a large group of friends which included many of his rugby teammates from St Mary’s Old Boys.
Speaking about his achievement, O’Keeffe said: “I broke down in tears when I reached the summit as I’d put so much into this challenge physically and emotionally. We had a few 14-hour-days which were absolutely draining, but now I’m back down it feels incredibly satisfying to know that I’ve done it. I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet to be honest.
“My motivation for this journey was to make my wife and son proud and to make a few more thousand people know about the Injured Players Foundation because of how the charity has supported me and my family since my injury.
“There were three or four times when I thought I couldn’t go any further and wanted to stop, but I kept repeating Rachel, Reuben and the IPF to remind myself why I was doing it. Those were the three words that got me through.
“I’m not sure it would have been possible if you don’t have those kinds of reasons driving you. The trek up is exhausting and the descent is also so hard. You put all your thoughts and energy into reaching the top, you forget you have to get back down again too!
“I can’t thank everyone enough who supported me throughout this challenge and on the mountain – my family, mates and the porters from Kilimanjaro Experts who went above and beyond to look after me and carry my wheelchair when needed. They were superhuman.”
Photos courtesy of Kilimanjaro Experts
Liam O’Keeffe’s fundraising page is https://givestar.io/gs/uhuru-saints-climb-kili
“I’ve been blown away by the support I’ve received from the rugby community. St Mary’s Old Boys and Gloucester RFU have been brilliant, and the Bristol Referees Society and local clubs in Bristol fundraised for me at the Sandy Mitchell 10s at Lockleaze Sports Centre.
“I’ve also received messages of support from the wider rugby family like Jonathan Joseph, David Flatman and Luke Pearce. The IPF set up a call with Jonny Wilkinson before I left, and he sent me a signed shirt to help with fundraising which was awesome. Apparently, Greg James has given us a shout out on BBC Radio 1 too, so it’s been a surreal few weeks!”
The IPF is England Rugby’s official charity and supports players at every level of the game who have sustained an acute life-changing injury whilst playing rugby union in England. Thankfully, catastrophic injuries remain extremely rare in the sport, but if one does happen on a rugby pitch the IPF is on hand to provide wide-ranging support for a player and their family for life if needed.
As O’Keeffe explains, “The IPF has looked after me since day one of my injury. They were by my bedside within 24 hours of my accident and have supported me and my family ever since.
“That support has removed so many of the barriers that makes being disabled difficult. From support returning to work, to funding house adaptations and additional rehabilitation which enabled me to go from five to six hours a week of rehab to five to six hours a day, they have made such a difference to my recovery.
“It’s an amazing charity that continues to do whatever it can to make my life better and more enjoyable and has given me the tools to get where I am today.
“When I thought about how I could raise awareness of the IPF, I figured - why not climb a mountain? The bigger the mountain, the greater the awareness, that’s what I’m hoping anyway!”
