Meiring and his wife Imogen. (Photo: Provided)
A man from the Lowveld’s life turned upside down four years ago when he was involved in a serious accident while training for an endurance race.
Still, Meiring de Clercq (33) harbors no ill feelings against the taxi driver who pushed him off the road at the time. On the contrary, all his focus and energy is now going into being able to be back at one of his favorite places as soon as possible: the golf course.
De Clercq’s friends and family stepped in and started a fundraiser to import a specialized wheelchair from Germany, which will enable him to stand up straight again and play nine holes of golf.
“Golf has always been a big part of my life,” says De Clercq.
“With the help of this wheelchair, I will finally be able to participate in golf tournaments again and no longer just watch from the sidelines. This means I can even compete in the US Adaptive Open Championship.
“Above all, my father and I will be able to play our favorite sport together again.”
De Clercq, then newly married, had his whole life turned upside down in May 2019 when he was involved in an accident.
“I was on my bike on the N4 at Nelspruit training for my third Ironman competition,” he says.
“The minibus taxi driver behind me got impatient and pushed me off the road into a stationary truck.”
Meiring, his wife Imogen and his daughter Mireyah. (Photo: Provided)
De Clercq was unconscious and only woke up five days after the accident in a hospital in another province.
He suffered a serious concussion and with it broke his back and sternum – a T-shaped bone that forms the front of the chest. A few broken ribs also lodged in his lung. Since then he has not been able to use his legs again.
According to De Clercq, he initially could not remember anything about the accident. The truck driver whose truck he crashed into witnessed the entire incident. The minibus taxi driver sped away before the lorry driver could apprehend him.
De Clercq does not hold any grudge against the taxi driver.
“It doesn’t help a person to hold on to something you can’t change,” he says.
“I have a wonderful life and a beautiful wife and child – Imogen and Mireyah. I have so much to live for and I realized with the accident that life is far too short to walk around with bad feelings in your heart.”
Although it was a learning school to do even everyday things in a wheelchair, De Clercq’s incentive was that his wife did not have to do everything for him and their child.
“My wife is my biggest supporter and she still helps me here and there, but I wanted to be able to do everyday things myself. I drive myself with the help of hand pulleys, dress myself and my employer has even adjusted my work environment so that I can continue as normal.”
New wheelchair will restore ‘normalcy’
The wheelchair will enable Meiring to play golf again. (Photo: Provided)
As a young man, De Clercq represented his school and national teams in various sports, including tennis, athletics, rugby and golf.
He still regularly rides his hand bike and has even completed a few races. He also has a great love for fishing and as an engineer he adapted his wheelchair himself to be able to drive in wooded areas as well.
“However, golf was always a big part of my life that was suddenly taken away from me,” he says.
“The specialized wheelchair will bring some normalcy back into my life.”
The wheelchair is electronic and enables paraplegics to stand upright. The user is fastened around the knees and waist and can stand up straight to hit a golf ball. The wheelchair is specifically designed for golfers and has special wheels that can ride on the greens and a large battery so that a game can be completed.
“The wheelchair is not very common; on the contrary, very few people know of his existence.”
However, the wheelchair, together with import costs, amounts to more than R700 000.
In an effort to help De Clercq realize his golf dream, his friends have a BackaBuddy campaign launched to raise the money. More than R100 000 has already been collected for the wheelchair.
More than just a wheelchair
Meiring de Clercq continues to support other golfers. (Photo: Provided)
De Clercq says he wants to take the whole campaign further and hopes to help others like him in the future to live out their dreams, or even just get by on a daily basis.
“There are so many people who don’t even have proper assistive devices and I would like to help ensure that everyone has the necessary equipment – whether it is obtained through donations, fundraising or a golf day,” he says.
According to De Clercq, anyone can make the best of such a situation if they have the right outlook.
“A person can choose to focus on the negative things that happen, or see it as an opportunity to live your life to the fullest,” he says.
“There is still so much good that one can do when you are a paraplegic, you just have to open your eyes and see it.”
De Clercq has taken on life with new zeal since the accident.
“Although I can no longer climb a mountain, the mountain is still beautiful. So I will continue to admire it and face the storm head first, rather than run away from it.”
