Fergus Farrell on his spinal cord injury, and how learning to ask for help changed his life

In 2018, former Connacht rugby player Fergus Farrell suffered a devastating spinal cord injury. Doctors gave him a 5% chance of ever walking again. Through immense determination, he defied all odds to regain his independence. He tells Helen O'Callaghan about his attempt to row 5,000km across the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Galway in 2022.

Fergus Farrell, who learned to walk after a spinal cord injury, is going to walk from New York to Los Angeles while raising awareness of the work of Spinal Injuries Ireland and also raising €1m for the charity. Pictures: Noel Sweeney

I didn’t complete Project Empower — my bid to row across the Atlantic from New York to Galway with my friend Damian Browne.

I didn’t row into Galway. I was evacuated from the boat 14 days in, in July 2022. Damian rowed in four months later.