Claire Gunney

Claire is my daughter-in-law and has been British kayak marathon champion in the last two years. Last year she competed for GB internationally and was ranked number 2 in the world. Marathon canoeing is not an Olympic sport so she gets very little funding and has to combine her training and competition with a full time job working as a civilian with Surrey Police. What makes her so remarkable are the difficulties she has had to overcome in order to achieve so much. She recovered from a serious car accident when her car was hit by someone speeding on the wrong side of the road but then was hit by Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - also known as ME - which meant getting in a kayak was out of the question. At the time she could barely lift a knife and fork or pick up a kettle to make a drink although typically she thought of others commenting that some people can't even get out of bed. This year she has continued her international career representing GB in a World Cup event in Italy and is due to compete in the European Championships in France in July.