On November 5, 2023, Frédéric Lazaro, femoral amputee and Pierre-Philippe Gerbelot, his prosthetist, completed the New York marathon in 5h55. The opportunity to raise awareness about a profession in difficulty, orthoprosthetics.
After 5h55 of effort and stride across New York, Frédéric Lazaro, femoral amputee and Pierre-Philippe Gerbelot, his prosthetist, finally glimpse the finish line at the entrance to Central Park, at the corner of 66th street. Arm in arm, the two friends cross the finish line of 42.195 km on November 5, 2023. After the 2022 Paris marathon in 5h59, the two athletes challenged the American version, reputedly more difficult, in four minutes less . Their goal was to finish their race in less than six hours, the maximum time to be recognized as a marathon runner. During the race, the two athletes, wearing t-shirts in the colors of Schaeffler Orthopedie, Pierre-Philippe Gerbelot’s company, never stopped supporting each other to cross the finish line together.
An awareness marathon
In addition to the major sporting challenge, this New York marathon was an opportunity to raise awareness of a profession in difficulty, that of orthoprosthetists. “ If patients with disabilities or loss of autonomy are better and better monitored, if they are supported by increasingly comfortable and technologically developed devices and highlighted by the upcoming Paralympic Games, the profession of orthoprosthetist remains under high tension », Says the French Union of Orthoprosthetists (UFOP) which supported the challenge of the two athletes. The approximately 1,300 French professionals are demanding an increase of at least 10% of the regulated orthoprosthesis prices blocked since 2017. “ This is not an increase but rather a catch-up. This is the minimum required to ensure the future of the profession and sustain the efficiency of patient monitoring. », complete the UFOP.
14,000 euros for a tailor-made prosthesis
In fact, support for their sports equipment remains minimal or almost non-existent. During the National Disability Conference (CNH), in April 2023, the government nevertheless promised “ financing of prostheses for sports practice, in particular racing blades “. For example, the tailor-made one with which Frédéric ran costs more than 14,000 euros, a cost which hinders many people with disabilities from practicing sports (Read: 20,000 euros for the sports prosthesis … not refunded!). With inflation, Pierre-Philippe Gerbelot and all of his colleagues also deplore the difficulties in getting paid in the face of the increase in the manufacturing costs of orthoprostheses. A few hours before starting their marathon, Frédéric Lazaro and Pierre-Philippe Gerbelot spoke on RTL, explaining that they wanted “ highlight this fight in the run-up to the Olympics and leave traces to raise awareness among public authorities in this support “. They have ten months left to complete this awareness marathon.
“All rights of reproduction and representation reserved.© Handicap.fr. This article was written by Clotilde Costil, journalist Handicap.fr”
2023-11-05 07:00:00
#Amputee #completes #marathon #prosthetist
