Teacher takes on Oysho Cardiff Half for charity that saved his life
A secondary school science teacher from Cardiff will be taking on the 2025 Oysho Cardiff Half Marathon to give back to the charity that helped save his life.
Nicholas Salter experienced a life-changing biking accident when he was just 12 years old, which left him with serious facial injuries.
The quick response and expert care of the Wales Air Ambulance service helped save Nicholas’ life and he’s been determined to repay them ever since.
The 30-year-old said: “I was mountain biking at Scout camp in the Forest of Dean when the accident happened. We’d gone into the mountains, and I was heading towards the edge of a cliff when my brake cable snapped. I managed to throw myself off he bike but in doing so I hit my head and knocked myself out.”
Nicholas broke his arm and suffered serious facial injuries. His Scout leader called the air ambulance and he was airlifted to hospital.
He said: “I woke up a few hours later and had no idea what had happened or where I was. I was told that if it wasn’t for the air ambulance rescuing me, I could have died and they were extremely concerned about the swelling on my head. It was a pretty scary moment.”
Nicholas spent a few days in hospital – getting stitches and being checked over for head injuries. Thankfully he didn’t experience any brain trauma and he’s just been left with a scar on his upper lip which he now hides with facial hair and a scar on his forehead which is hidden by the hair on his head.
However, since his accident he has dedicated much of his time raising money for the Wales Air Ambulance Charity.
He’s taken on bog snorkelling events, rode from Brecon to Cardiff, carried out a skydive over Swansea and cycled from Cardiff Castle to Buckingham Palace. He event appeared on ITV’s Surprise Surprise with Holly Willoughby in his late teens to highlight his fundraising efforts.
In total he’s raised more than £15,000 and hopes that through taking on the Oysho Cardiff Half Marathon he’ll get this figure closer to £20,000.
He added: “It costs a lot for the Wales Air Ambulance to run, which is why fundraising is so important. This will be my first half marathon – I’ve only ever taken part in 5 and 10Ks before – and I’m hoping that my contributions could help save someone else’s life, just as mine was saved 17 years ago.”
Matt Newman, Chief Executive at event organisers Run 4 Wales, added: “It’s incredible to hear of Nicholas’ fundraising challenges over the years to show his gratitude to the Wales Air Ambulance Charity for what they did for him when he was 12. We’re very much looking forward to welcoming him to the start line of his first half marathon in Cardiff and can’t wait to cheer him around the course as he continues with his brilliant fundraising efforts.”
