09 Oct 2023
A young man with cerebral palsy hopes to swim the equivalent of the Channel after completing a fundraiser at his local leisure centre.
20-year-old Ollie Sales, who is unable to walk or sit unaided due to his condition, raised more than £1,000 by swimming 10 lengths of the pool at Harpenden Leisure Centre.
Ollie now aims to continue honing his swimming skills, with the ultimate goal of swimming the Channel in the future.
“Ollie has been brought up to believe nothing can stop him,” said Ollie’s mum, Peta Sales-Lucas.
“He’s a very determined young man and is always looking to inspire others with cerebral palsy.
“He documents his swimming and weightlifting journey on social media where he has more than 1,000 followers!
“One day we started talking about his goals for swimming, and this is when we came up with the idea for the challenge. If Ollie sets himself a task, he becomes even more determined, and with the added incentive of helping people with similar limitations to him.”
Ollie said: “If I can do it, anyone can do it. Thanks to amazing people at the Harpenden centre like duty manager James Baird, I’m able to achieve anything I set out to do. Next year I want to double my target for the fundraiser and swim 50 lengths. I hope that one day I might even be able to swim the Channel!”
The fundraiser, organised by Ollie and his mum, Peta, raised money for HCPT Group 124, a charity that takes disabled or disadvantaged children each year on a trip abroad.
To donate to Ollie’s fundraiser visit: https://tinyurl.com/Ollie-Sales
Visit Ollie’s Instagram page: @ollies_strongman_journey
