Former dancer overcomes paralysis to trek 5,000km across Britain and Ireland

Esmee Gummer dreamed of a professional dance career until a surgical complication at 18 left her paralysed from the waist down. Now 35, she swapped her Hackney residence for a campervan and began a 5,000km (3,107-mile) trek across the United Kingdom and Ireland, departing from Inverness in June. She runs up to seven hours each day, sometimes covering 70km, and after each run she leads a free 5km club in the evening, attracting hundreds of participants in towns such as Colchester, Cambridge, Ely and Peterborough.

A support crew drives the van between locations while Gummer handles the footwork, targeting completion of the challenge in 99 days with a final day set for 3 October in London. The initiative, called The Nation’s 5k, supports charities Wings for Life and Sport in Mind, donating to organisations nominated by each community. Enthusiastic crowds have welcomed her, especially in her home county of Essex, and runners have travelled between cities to join her runs.