Mum's epic triathlon challenge for doctors who saved her son's life

A thankful mum is set to run, swim and cycle to help raise money for the medical staff which saved her son's life.
Claire Taylor (right), 46 of Hesketh Bank, near Preston.Claire Taylor (right), 46 of Hesketh Bank, near Preston.
Claire Taylor (right), 46 of Hesketh Bank, near Preston.

Mum-of-three Claire Taylor will take part in the sprint triathlon at Southport after doctors rescued her then two-year-old son Christian from a seizure.

The 46-year-old from Hesketh Bank, near Preston, will swim 750 metres, cycle 20k and run 5k to raise money for Ormskirk Children’s A&E and Alder Hey Children’s hospital.

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The event, on May 22, falls exactly six years to the day that Christian, now eight, was rushed to hospital and Claire recalls how quickly he life turned upside down.

Claire is raise money for Alder Hey Children's hospital and Ormskirk Children's A&E after they helped saved the life of her son Christian.Claire is raise money for Alder Hey Children's hospital and Ormskirk Children's A&E after they helped saved the life of her son Christian.
Claire is raise money for Alder Hey Children's hospital and Ormskirk Children's A&E after they helped saved the life of her son Christian.

“Christian was a perfectly healthy boy and then one Sunday morning after a short viral infection he said his legs felt funny,” said Claire.

“He then collapsed and started having a seizure. It just wouldn’t stop and we were terrified. We called an ambulance, which rushed him to Ormskirk Children’s A&E. His seizure continued for over an hour and he was taken for a brain scan.”

And Claire has praised the staff at both hospitals for going above and beyond the call of duty.

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She said: “The staff at A&E were amazing and one of the consultants even looked at the images from home, despite it being his Sunday morning off.

Claire is raise money for Alder Hey Children's hospital and Ormskirk Children's A&E after they helped saved the life of her son Christian.Claire is raise money for Alder Hey Children's hospital and Ormskirk Children's A&E after they helped saved the life of her son Christian.
Claire is raise money for Alder Hey Children's hospital and Ormskirk Children's A&E after they helped saved the life of her son Christian.

“Christian ended up on life support and was transferred to Alder Hey Hospital. We were in total shock. One moment we had been enjoying a lovely sunny morning as a family, the next moment we were watching medical teams fighting to save our son’s life.”

While Christian was in intensive care at Alder Hey, Claire and husband Wayne, 49, were accommodated in Mac House, which offers a home-from-home at no cost for families of sick children being treated at the hospital.

Claire said: “After five very scary days, we were allowed home and Christian made a complete recovery. He is now a very healthy and active eight year old. It was always my intention to raise money for both places to say thank you for saving our son’s life and supporting us through that week, but shortly after this I found out I was pregnant with twins.

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“But now twins Ethan and Joel are at school I’ve been able to start training with my wonderful friends Gabriela Cieplińska and Clare Bamber. It’s been our ambition to do a triathlon for a while, so we’ve called our team ‘Tri b4 we die’ and we aim to raise funds for both organisations.”

To help raise money for Claire’s cause go to www.justgiving.com/teams/claire-taylor103.

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