Former decathlete Ben Gregory making “miraculous recovery” from bike crash that left him in coma

Former decathlete Ben Gregory, who spent several weeks on life support after a crash while cycling in London, is said to have made a “miraculous recovery” from his near-fatal crash injuries – although the 31 year old will remain in hospital until at least mid-2023 as his rehabilitation continues.

Gregory, who retired from competition in 2019, was cycling home on 19 August from his work as a strength and conditioning coach at a gym in London when he was knocked off his bike by a driver.

> Team GB decathlete fighting for his life after serious crash while riding bike

The crash left him with life-threatening injuries include a fractured neck and skull, as well as multiple brain haemorrhages, and he was airlifted to the Royal London Hospital where he remained in an induced coma for a number of weeks.

Gregory, who competed for Great Britain and also represented Wales in three editions of the Commonwealth Games,  is now continuing his recovery at the Wellington Neurological Rehabilitation Unit in St John’s Wood, north west London.

Although he will remain there for at least six months, and will continue to need therapy once he is eventually discharged, his mother Lorraine told Sky News that his recovery has been “miraculous.”

She told the broadcaster: “One of the paramedics from the air ambulance crew who brought Ben to the Royal London, a guy called Frank, said that he didn’t think Ben could survive the injuries, because people usually didn’t.

“He continued to visit Ben since bringing him in, and saw him last week and said that his recovery had been miraculous. Without the London Air Ambulance, Ben would 100 per cent not be here today.”

Sky News says that friends and family of the decathlete have been undertaking a series of challenges to raise money for Gregory, who will not be able to go back to the flat where he lives with his fiancée, Naomi Heffernan, partly because it is not accessible by wheelchair.

He has also received messages of support from friends and well-wishers from the UK and beyond, with Mrs Gregory saying: “We’ve all been blown away by all the love and support for Ben, from people across the whole world.”

His friends Tom Wallace and Alex Banks is also undertaking a 60km run next Tuesday 20 December along the River Thames from Windsor to Henley then back to Marlow to raise funds for the London Air Ambulance.

So fair, the pair have raised £3,625 against a target of £3,000, with Wallace saying on his GoFundMe page that following his crash, “Ben has spent every single day since then beating the odds.”