What’s better than beating a world record? Beating your own world record!
That’s what Guidant Global’s Stephen Salmon has done. He completed the 2022 London Marathon in two hours, 56 minutes and seven seconds. It’s the fastest marathon time for a participant in a non-racing wheelchair – and over 22 minutes fastest than his previous Guinness World Record of three hours 18 minutes and 15 seconds, which he set last year.
What’s more, Stephen raised another £3,642 for Whizz-Kidz, which funds wheelchairs, equipment and services for young wheelchair users. And we’ve matched funds donated by Stephen’s colleagues too.
As a wheelchair user, Stephen understands how important it is to empower young wheelchair users to be independent. While serving as a Royal Engineer in the British Army in his mid-20s, he suffered from an illness that resulted in him needing a wheelchair – and abruptly ended his military career. He’s been volunteering for Whizz-Kidz since 2018 and has raised over £15,000, wheeling 3 marathons. He says the charity played a key role turning his life around.
He says: “Achieving the personal goal of setting new Guinness World Records has been made more meaningful for me by being able to support Whizz-Kidz at the same time. Through my association with the charity, I’ve added a greater purpose to the life experience that resulted in me becoming a wheelchair user.”
Stephen joined Guidant Global in 2019 and is now Senior Marketing Executive. He is co-lead of IMAble, our employee-led group for disability and mental health, and as a Disability Inclusion Specialist, he is helping to drive our disability inclusion strategy and shape best practice towards disability confident recruitment.
