Sex and disability: what can we learn?

When he first saw Anne it was in 30C Kenyan heat and he was drawn to her tall, slender frame, her smile and that flicker in her eyes. Norman made her laugh with a bad joke after noticing her callipers. Though his humour was a little off-colour they talked all night, and by sunrise this encounter — 10 years ago at a charity-work barbecue in Machakos, Kenya — was the start of a traditional courtship between two very different people: a black disabled teacher from western Kenya and a white ex-miner from Newcastle.

They were living 300 miles apart, volunteering in disadvantaged schools. With no telephones, they would send each other love letters, and when they were together, they slept in separate rooms. Once married, their romance would see Anne Wafula Strike become a Paralympian wheelchair-racer, a model, a motivational speaker and, perhaps most significantly, a mother.

Anne developed polio as a baby after being given an out-of-date immunisation. This affected the development of her legs, which meant she had to use crutches and eventually a wheelchair. The couple now live in Harlow, Essex, with their eight-year-old son, Timothy. Norman sees Anne as many things — inspiring, strong, bossy, sexy, but never as disabled. He’s proud of his wife for all she’s achieved and now recognises that flicker in her eyes when they first met as the look of determination. “She went into a wheelchair after a difficult pregnancy,” he says. “She took up wheelchair-racing to get rid of her tummy fat and then turned pro. She’s an incredible woman.” Read Article

By Jill Clark