He did it!

Makeshift finish line in humor and improvisation mode. Toilet paper does fine!

Major Al Jarvis, who broke his back in a parachute accident two years ago, had been told by medics that he would never be able to run a marathon again. The married father of two almost severed his spinal cord back in 2008 when a parachute jump went horribly wrong. He also broke his hip and his leg and was left temporarily paralysed. Surgeons used metal rods and screws to repair the damage and Major Jarvis has endured countless hours of physiotherapy and treatment to get back to fitness to deploy to Afghanistan and complete the challenge.



And today he has completed 38 laps of the Task Force Helmand Headquarters in Lashkar Gah to make up the regulation 26.2 mile(42.16km) marathon distance.
Wearing his body armour and with temperatures above 30 degrees, Major Jarvis finished the course in 6 hours 25 minutes.

This is the second time Major Jarvis has run a marathon in Afghanistan but since his last attempt, the 37-year-old has had to recover from an injury so serious doctors said he would never again be able to race. 

All the money Major Jarvis has raised with his enterprise will be donated to Combat Stress – a charity which offers support to veterans suffering mental health problems.

After a shower and some lunch, Major Jarvis was back at his desk in the Provincial Reconstruction Team office where he works as part of the Military Stabilisation and Support Group. He proved the medics wrong, and showed what spirit truly is.

Respect. That's all i can say. True respect.

Best of luck to him and all the other lads out on Ops, all around the world.

Ministry of Defence story

Combat Stress charity