War veteran is halfway to making history

Terry Byrne, 32, is halfway through his Grand Slam Challenge to climb the highest peaks on each of the seven continents and walk to the North and South Poles after successfully reaching the summit of South America’s Mount Aconcagua.

The ‘Adaptive Grand Slam’ team, which is made up of disabled adventurers, have already completed successful expeditions, including Mount McKinley in North America, Mount Elbrus in Europe and Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa.

Terry, who is originally from Blackpool but now lives in Colchester with his wife Katie and six-year-old son Harry, was injured whilst leading a brigade operation in Afghanistan in 2008.

He lost his right leg below the knee and a finger on his right hand after stepping on an explosive.

He said:“We were delighted that our mission to climb Mount Aconcagua was a success and it’s fantastic that the whole team were able to safely reach the summit together.

“This success means that the team is now officially halfway to achieving its ultimate goal of completing the Grand Slam challenge.”

The world record attempt will raise money for The Adaptive Grand Slam Foundation, which supports charities that help disabled people.

David Loudon, Chief Executive at wealth management company Quilter Cheviot, which supports the AGS team, said: “We are so pleased to hear of the team’s success in its bid to summit Mount Aconcagua and this achievement will hopefully help to spread the message that having a disability does not prevent anyone from accomplishing incredible things.”