Sharon wins fitness race with University help

A Teesside-based champion athlete has won her race back to full fitness with the help of the University.

Long distance endurance runner Sharon Gayter turned to Teesside University following an operation to remove a large cyst from inside her ankle bone last September.

The operation involved stem cell treatment and left Sharon with a drastically weakened bone which meant she could only cope with light stress - running outdoors was out of the question.

Desperate to reclaim her crown as Britain's number one long distance runner, she turned to the Teesside Sports Injury Centre, based at the University, for help.

The centre was set up as a social venture five years ago by senior lecturer Steve Smelt, programme leader in sports therapy. He previously worked for both Middlesbrough and Sunderland football clubs helping to get their players fit again after injuries.

Steve was delighted to offer Sharon the chance to use the University’s new hydrotherapy swimming pool, part of the Centuria South development which was opened by her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal, in October 2010.

Sports injury staff from the University's sports therapy degree put together a recovery programme for Sharon, who studied on Teesside’s sport and exercise master’s degree and does some part-time lecturing at the University in between her busy running schedule.

underwater treadmill a ‘godsend’ Sharon said: ‘I needed to get back to running, but my ankle bone couldn’t support my weight – the underwater treadmill was a godsend.

‘With the water absorbing 70-80% of my body weight, I ran against an underwater jet stream three times a week for a month. Underwater cameras helped monitor the impact on my legs. For one-to-one rehab, this is absolutely magnificent.’ Her first comeback was the 2011 Athens International Ultramarathon. Reassured that her bones had been strengthened and restored to fitness by the hydrotherapy pool, Sharon went on to run a 120km race in the Netherlands in April, becoming the fastest ever British finisher.

She is now preparing for some of the world’s toughest endurance races over summer, including The High – the world’s highest ‘ultra’ going up to 18,000ft in the Himalayas. Only one person has ever finished the 135 miles to date.

Sharon also hopes to reclaim her British crown at the Commonwealth Mountain and Ultra Championships in North Wales in September –providing she suffers no further injuries.

Teesside Sports Injury Centre Steve Smelt set up the Teesside Sports Injury Centre five years ago to provide exactly this kind of unique service to North East athletes like Sharon. It also provides invaluable work placements to Teesside students.

Its main base is on the University’s Middlesbrough campus, but satellite clinics have been established at venues such as Darlington’s Dolphin Centre and Stokesley Leisure Centre.

Steve said: ‘We’ve certainly come a long way since our initial £5,000 business start-up grant from the University’s Department of Academic Enterprise.

‘We attract some great talent to our sports therapy degree and it’s marvellous that we can share their skills in the clinic, offering a service to sportsmen and women in the region.

‘By helping get our elite athletes back to full fitness, and supporting other local sportsmen and women through our commercial arm, I think we live up to our reputation as a University that serves its community, encourages an entrepreneurial spirit and provides a first-class educational experience.’

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