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Graham initially thought he had fallen off his bike or hit a car (Image: Graham Sharpe)
A cyclist says his life was saved by US President Joe Biden after he suffered a sudden cardiac arrest while out riding with friends.
Father-of-three Graham Sharpe, 65, felt dizzy before his vision turned yellow and he collapsed, breaking his collarbone in the fall.
In a happy twist of fate, the US leader was meeting King Charles at nearby Windsor Castle and a heightened emergency presence meant paramedics quickly rushed to his aid.
Graham said: “The police had put a message out that they needed a defibrillator and an armed response vehicle on standby nearby had one. It took two shocks to restart my heart.
“Joe Biden and his entourage were in Windsor that day to visit King Charles at Windsor Castle. So really, I have both of them to thank for saving my life!”
Emergency services rushed to Graham's aid after the 2023 incident (Image: Graham Sharpe)
Graham, of Harrow in north-west London, is sharing his story to support a final push to victory for the Express Complete The Circuit crusade.
Backed by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), our campaign raises awareness of the need to register defibrillators on The Circuit. It is the UK’s national network used to direct 999 callers to their nearest device.
The accident in July last year left Graham confused and he initially thought he had just fallen off his bike or been hit by a car.
But tests in hospital showed his arteries were severely narrowed, with one 30% blocked, and this had caused his heart to stop beating.
Graham said: “That shocked me because my diet was generally healthy, I don’t smoke and I barely drink alcohol. I didn’t know what could have caused this.”
The retired solicitor underwent double coronary artery bypass graft surgery and is now back on his bike, regularly cycling up to 60 miles and taking part in sponsored rides to raise money for the BHF.
Graham said: “What I’ve been through also made me more aware of the great importance of accessible defibs.
“I’m a huge supporter of community defibs and the fact that BHF is actively involved in registering them so that members of the public know where they are, encouraging communities to purchase them and placing them where people need them.
Graham has recovered and is back cycling long distances (Image: Graham Sharpe)
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“After all, you can’t rely on Joe Biden to be around in these situations!”
There are more than 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests every year in the UK, but fewer than one in ten sufferers survive.
A person’s chance of survival drops by 10% for every minute they wait for a defibrillator. More than 98,000 defibrillators have been registered, nearing our target of 100,000.
Judy O’Sullivan, the BHF’s director of innovation in health programmes, said: “ “In a cardiac arrest, every second counts.
"That’s why it’s vital that Guardians of defibrillators register their device on The Circuit so that ambulance services can immediately direct people to the nearest defib, saving valuable time.
“We would also urge everyone looking after one – such as those in charge of pubs, sports clubs, community centres, churches and village halls – to make it accessible to their community 24/7, to give a person suffering a cardiac arrest the best chance of survival.”
We're now just a stone's throw from our target, writes Judy O’Sullivan
When someone has a cardiac arrest, a defibrillator could mean the difference between life or death.
There are more than 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in the UK each year, with a survival rate of less than 1 in 10.
Every minute someone has to wait for a defibrillator, their chance of survival drops by 10 percent.
It is vital that the emergency services know where defibrillators are so they can direct people to access them quickly and easily.
Worryingly, all too often when someone has a cardiac arrest the location of the nearest available defibrillator is unknown because many of these life-saving devices are not visible to ambulance services.
We’re determined to change this by urging organisations with a defibrillator to register it online immediately on The Circuit; the national defibrillator network which is connected to every UK ambulance service.
Thanks to our campaign with the Daily Express, over 98,000 defibrillators are now registered and we are a stone’s throw from reaching our target of 100,000.
If you are a school, business or anyone who has a defibrillator, please take a few minutes to register it today. This simple action could help save many lives.
- Judy O’Sullivan is director of innovation in health programmes at the British Heart Foundation
English (US) ·