On 18 April, Ollie Thorn will set out on a challenge and a world first, to hand-cycle to Everest Base Camp. He’s doing it to raise essential funds for Wings for Life, a charity dedicated to finding a cure for spinal cord injury. Stewarts is proud to support its former client on this challenge, helping to ensure that all money raised goes directly to fund this life-changing research.

The Challenge

Riding over two weeks, Ollie is part of a team of six who will ride hundreds of kilometres at high elevation, starting at 3,000m increasing to over 5,200m where the air is extremely thin making this an extreme challenge. The team will travel through Tibet, up huge mountain passes and across Tibetan Plateaus.

Ollie has been training six days a week, including 2-3 days a week of altitude training.

Ollie has taken part in hand-cycling challenges previously, having ridden from London to Paris in 2022 and 2025 as part of Stewarts ‘No Limits’ team.

Kara Smith, Partner and Head of Pro Bono comments:

“I’ve had the privilege of riding from London to Paris with Ollie on two occasions. His mental strength and determination are inspiring, and his passion for pushing boundaries is infectious. We are incredibly proud at Stewarts to support Ollie on this remarkable journey.”

Renewed hope – Ollie’s why

For years, Ollie kept the hope of a cure at a distance. He saw that hope could be a trap, he didn’t want to live waiting for a miracle that may never arrive. But last year things changed when a close friend of Ollie’s with the exact same injury joined a medical trial. Today, she is learning to walk again.

Ollie says: “The ‘what if’ in the back of my mind exploded. A cure isn’t a fairy tale anymore; it’s a clinical reality. It is no longer a matter of if we can cure spinal cord injury, but when.” Ollie is riding to raise funds to speed up this research.

Ollie says he is also riding for the person he was in that hospital bed years ago, saying “I want to show that even when paralyzed from the chest down, we can do crazy things and go into the unknown.” He is also riding for his children, “I wanted to show my little boy what is possible. And I now have a glimmer of hope that one day, I will be able to walk my newborn daughter down the aisle.”

Ollie’s story

Ollie’s life changed abruptly when he was involved in a serious road traffic collision. It resulted in the end of his career in the Army. He had to completely rebuild his life, learning to live with a disability.

After completing rehabilitation, he has since competed in professional sport (downhill ski racing), and worked in leadership positions across people, culture and sales.

Peregrine Redgrave, Partner in our Personal Injury team represented Ollie in his personal injury claim. He provided his reflections of their first meeting and the case:

“From my first meeting with Ollie in hospital following his motorcycle accident I could tell that he was determined to not let his catastrophic injury define who he was and that he would have a fulfilling, albeit different, life to look forward to. He was incredibly committed to his rehabilitation, which was secured initially through the Army and then by way of interim payments through his claim, and always strived to make the best of his situation. The loss of his career at such an early age was devastating for him but over the years it has been such a real pleasure to see the work he has undertaken to help those with disabilities”.

About Wings For Life

Wings for Life is a charity dedicated to finding a cure for spinal cord injury. They fund world-class trials that are currently helping people with spinal cord injury be able to walk and stand. They are bridging the gap between paralysed for life and paralysed for now.

You can read more about Ollie’ story and Wings for Life here.

BBC South East recently wrote about Ollie’s challenge, please click here to read that article.