Peterborough man cycles from Yaxley to Cambridge for charity supporting niece, 2, with rare muscular condition

Spinal Muscular Atrophy sufferer Katie Dove, 2, with mum Sarah and sponsored cyclist Paul Yates who did 78 mile cycle ride for the SMA charity (image: David Lowndes)

A Peterborough man has completed a 78-mile bike ride for a charity supporting his niece - who suffers from a rare genetic condition.

Paul Yates, 39, from Yaxley, cycled from Yaxley to Cambridge on April 7 to raise money for Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) UK - a charity which supports people and families affected by the rare degenerative muscular condition.

Paul’s niece, Katy Dove, aged two, was diagnosed with the condition when she was 14 months old.

Little Katy Dove, 2, was diagnosed with the condition when she was 14 months old (image: David Lowndes)

The condition has weakened the muscles in her body and affected her ability to move. She needs a special wheelchair to get around - which she controls herself using a lever.

“I biked from Yaxley to Cambridge and back yesterday (April 7), which was 78 miles in total,” Paul said. “We’ve already raised £690 for the charity.”

Katy has type two SMA - which develops in babies who are seven to 18 months old.

Although it is less severe than type one SMA - which appears in babies less than six months old - it affects every muscle in her body.

“She was about eight months old when it started,” Katy’s mum, Sarah Dove, 32, said. “She lost the ability to roll over and sit up by herself.

“She was diagnosed at 14 months old. Two weeks later she started having lumbar puncture for her treatment.”

Lumbar puncture is a procedure where a thin needle is inserted between the bones of a person's lower spine. It is a procedure to treat SMA in which a medication called Nusinersen is delivered directly into the cerebrospinal fluid found in the spinal cord.

Sarah expressed her pride in her brother Paul for completing the bike ride for the charity.

“It’s amazing what he’s done,” she said. “Everything he went through yesterday - he worked so hard and I’m so proud of him.

“The money goes straight to the SMA UK charity which helps families get support and helps the charity to find new treatments for children.

“There are some treatments which are helping to increase the life expectancy of children and to help them gain some abilities which they couldn’t have in the first place.”

Paul, who suffers from depression, got into cycling to support his mental health.

“Cycling has helped me in a big way,” he said. “I did research into what could help me and the cycling helps - and so does raising money for charity.

“I started last year and it’s been a real help - especially over lockdown.

“I felt so proud but at the end I was so tired. Going through headwinds in the countryside was horrible but to finish felt amazing.

“I’m hoping to do a bike ride for MS (Multiple Sclerosis) next year - as my brother has it.”

You can donate to Paul’s JustGiving fundraising page.