Dad in charity ride to thank Sheffield Children's hospital

Jonathan and Isabel Dixon, of Sheffield. Jonathan is completing a 100km bike ride in aid of Sheffield Children's Hospital as a thank you to the doctor's who saved Isabel's life. The 24-year-old survived meningitis when she was just four.

Jonathan Dixon, aged 54, from Hunters Bar will ride the 100km Sportive leg of the Tour de Yorkshire on April 30 in the hopes of raising as much money as possible for The Children’s Hospital Charity.

Jonathan’s daughter, 24 year-old Isabel Dixon, was just four-years-old when she woke complaining of a headache. When she later become drowsy, her parents took her to hospital.

“By the time we got her there she’d gone limp and developed a rash.

“They weren’t sure it was meningitis but she was starting to show the signs, so one of the emergency doctors made the decision to get her straight on to intravenous antibiotics.”

“It’s an experience I wouldn’t wish it on anybody. One day we had a normal healthy child and the following day we had a child that was deeply unconscious and seemingly close to death.”

“We just feel very lucky that Isabel came through it without lasting effects. She’s now training to become a speech therapist in the NHS.”

Jonathan will be joined by thousands of other cyclists riding in the Tour de Yorkshire Sportive, which starts and ends in Sheffield’s Fox Valley.

He added: “I’m terribly unfit. I’ll get round – I might not be as fast as some of the others but if I manage an average speed of 14 or 15 miles an hour I’ll be happy.”

To sponsor Jonathan go to www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Jonathan-Dixon9. To find out how you can take part in the Tour de Yorkshire sportive yourself email [email protected].