Injured man's partner raises money for Notts intensive care unit that treated him

A man who was left with serious injuries after crashing while taking part in a triathlon in Nottinghamshire is still in intensive care.

Colin McAuley, 49, was taking part in the Outlaw Half Nottingham Triathlon on May 20 when he came off his bike and suffered a serious head injury in Leachcroft Hill, Southwell.

He was on the intensive care unit (ICU) at the Queen’s Medical Centre for three weeks, before being transferred to Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

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Colin and his partner, Holly Kelly, had travelled to Nottingham from their home in Tamworth for the triathlon.

Ms Kelly now aims to raise £10,000 for the Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC) as a way of thanking staff for caring for Mr McAuley.

On Colin’s progress, Ms Kelly said: “He had a lot of injuries to his left hand side. They’re all fixing now - broken bones, things like that.

“He had a head injury. It’s going to be a bit of a long journey because it took him a while to come out of the coma.

“We’re just taking it day-by-day really.”

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Ms Kelly has so far raised £1,800 by completing the Great Midlands Fun Run on June 3 and the QMC Big Charity Abseil on June 9.

She aims to complete seven more sporting events to raise money, including the Nottingham 10k on August 12 and the Robin Hood Half Marathon on September 30.

She said: “I can’t begin to tell you how amazing the team are. They were incredible with Col. I’m just so thankful for everything they’ve done for us.

“I’m just going to carry on until Col can say thank you himself.”

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She added: “If I can just be more like him and challenge myself a bit more while raising money for people - he won’t believe it.

“I’m not a natural runner at all. I can do a little bit but I get bored and my legs hurt. Doing this training and doing it for him makes it so much easier because I’ve got a reason and a purpose.”

Naomi Walters, senior community fundraiser at Nottingham Hospitals Charity, said: “What Holly is doing is amazing, and we are so grateful to her for committing so much time and energy to fundraise for the ICU.

“We have been really touched to hear from her all about Colin, who sounds like an equally amazing individual, and everyone at Nottingham Hospitals Charity is hoping that he makes a speedy recovery.”

To donate or find out more, visit: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/whatwouldcoldo

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