Top of the World: Surviving the Manchester Bombing to Scale Kilimanjaro in a Wheelchair

Martin Hibbert was left paralysed from the waist down by the Manchester Arena bombing which killed twenty-two people on 22 May 2017. ,Determined to make a difference, he scaled Kilimanjaro in a wheelchair, raising a million pounds for charity.

Martin's teenage daughter Eve was one of the 940 injured, in Eve's case, gravely. The dad from Bolton has since become a leading campaigner both for victims of the atrocity and those with spinal cord injuries.

Determined to make a difference he took on the ultimate challenge, scaling Kilimanjaro in a wheelchair, becoming the second paraplegic to do so, and raising a million pounds for charity. Reaching the summit, on 13 June 2022 Martin, who was the closest person to the bomber to survive, said, 'I've often wondered why I was saved. Now I know why. It was for this moment.'

This is Martin's incredible story.

Martin Hibbert is a dad of one from Bolton, Lancashire. After two separate courses of radical NeuroPhysics therapy in Australia Martin regained movement in his legs and was able to stand in his callipers. He is the vice-chairman of the Spinal Injuries Association and is also involved in seeking justice for those affected by the Manchester Arena bombing. He hopes to build an NPT clinic in Manchester so all spinal cord injury patients can receive the same radical treatment. He lives in Chorley with his wife Gabby and cocker spaniel Alfie.

Fiona Duffy has worked as a journalist for more than thirty years.