Injury battle leads to Invictus Games spot

Lucy Holt, 29, of Cranwell, is part of the British team of wounded, injured and sick military personnel and veterans competing at The Hague in The Netherlands, which was postponed from 2020 by the pandemic.

The former Senior Aircraftsman will be heading out on April 14 to compete in rowing, athletics, power lifting and wheelchair basketball.

A keen netball player who represented the UK Armed Forces, Lucy struggled to come to terms with the end of her playing career when she suffered a serious ankle injury in 2016. It had a knock-on effect with her mental health, and she began feeling very low as the injury limited how much she could do for her young son, Harvey, now aged eight. But the Invictus Games has opened her up to new sports which she can still do and enjoy, despite her injury.

Unsure of what competition she will be up against, Lucy said: “If I walk away with some personal bests, that will be good. I’m taking each day as it comes and showing, just because I have an injury, it doesn’t mean I cannot compete at a high level. There is something out there for everyone. Having the camaraderie and banter back, the team and family around me is important too.”

Reflecting on her injury, Lucy saw consultants and physiotherapists and was put through a series of operations to repair a tear and realign her tendons and ligaments. The wound started to break down because the blood supply was damaged and she was temporarily left with a hole in her foot. More operations finally saved her ankle, with further surgery to come later this year.

Lucy said: “I have lost 90 per cent of the movement in my ankle and will not get that back and I’ve lost a lot of the feeling in my foot. There are times when I cannot walk because of the pain, but I am managing my expectations.”

Medically discharged from the RAF in 2019, she now works at Lincoln County Hospital as a corporate support officer.

She was encouraged by friends to go along to some sports trials for veterans and was soon able to switch her skills to wheelchair basketball and seated throwing, then got into rowing and power lifting, taking part in the Warrior Games in the USA for veterans. All her training lends itself to all four sports.

“Doing the rowing has pushed me into the elite sports path. I’m doing 15 training sessions a week with the GB rowing staff and will be trialling for Team GB on April 9 too,” said Lucy.

She was lucky enough to meet Invictus Games ambassador Prince Harry in 2019 when the team was announced. “Prince Harry is lovely and very down to earth.

“He took time out to talk to each team member asking what sports we were competing in and also making jokes,” she said.

Harvey and her husband Daniel, along with her mum and step-dad will be cheering Lucy on in Holland wearing Team Lucy T-shirts. She said: “They have been through this journey with me and seen me at my worst and through the surgeries, but at the moment I am in a good place.”