From the [UK] Independent:

UK equestrian Lee Pearson won his third gold medal in his third successive Paralympic games this week. He was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, a muscle and joint condition that left him with small, twisted limbs, and has undergone 15 operations to untangle his joints. He controls his horse, Gentleman, with his lips.

When he was born, doctors all but gave up on him. Hospital personnel put his crib in a “broom cupboard.” An excerpt:

“I suppose I was not a pretty sight,” Pearson would later say. “My right foot was wrapped round my left knee, my left foot was wrapped round my right knee, my arms and hands were horribly twisted and I had an ugly birthmark covering half of my face and the top of my head. Mum took a gulp, picked me up and gave me the first of a million cuddles”.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 17th, 2008 at 4:56 am and is filed under exercise/sports, personal stories, success stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.  Email This Post