Jack Kavanagh: ‘It meant finding a new way of navigating the world’

Keen sportsman Jack Kavanagh was paralysed 12 years ago, but an exoskeleton is helping him walk again. …

Jack Kavanagh was just 20 when he hit his head on a sandbank diving into the sea during a Portuguese holiday.

He broke the fifth vertebrae in his back and was left with no movement from his armpits down.

After extensive rehabilitation, Jack wanted to get back into sport.

He now uses an exoskeleton, which acts as a robotic suit, allowing him to stand up and walk.

“It’s not a cure but it’s a training device,” he said.

“And it has allowed me to go and find some of these sports like handcycling.

“It has just been a new way of navigating the world.”

Video journalist: Niall McCracken