A PITREAVIE AAC athlete who will compete at the Invictus Games says that sport has helped turn his life around.

Michael Mellon, 37, is one of 90 competitors that will represent the UK at the Games, which begin on Saturday in Toronto, Canada.

The dad-of-three, who lives in Cardenden, was just 17 when he joined the RAF in 1997 and followed his father, sister and brother into military service.

But in 2001, Michael, who served as a senior aircraftman, fractured his tibia and fibula while playing in an RAF rugby match that resulted in compartment syndrome, which is a painful and potentially serious condition caused by bleeding or swelling within an enclosed bundle of muscles, known as a muscle “compartment”.

The condition saw him downgraded in his role as a gunner and meant he was unable to deploy overseas, and in 2005 was medically discharged.

Facing the daunting challenge of adapting to civilian life, Michael suffered from depression before, due to ongoing health issues, took the difficult decision to have his leg amputated almost four years ago.

He explained: “In the regiment you become extremely close to your co-workers; you are a family so I really struggled watching them all leave for Afghanistan while I was left behind. I kept thinking to myself, ‘I wish I was going with them’.

“At my worst, I was 20 stone and pretty much housebound. I was out of a job, my wife was now the breadwinner and it started to affect our marriage.

“On top of everything, I was really struggling with the pain from my leg injury and I lost all of my confidence.

“When I first had the operation, I regretted it. The pain was still unbearable but, as time went on, the pain subsided and now it’s normal.

“Having the operation has enabled me to get back into sport. Being a gunner, I was really into my fitness and so when that was taken away, it was difficult.

“I joined a local athletics club, Pitreavie AAC, and later applied for the Invictus Games. When I found out I had made the team, I was chuffed!

“I feel a lot more positive about things now.”

Support from the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund supported Michael with funding towards a specialised wheelchair, which has enabled him to compete in various wheelchair sports.

He plays wheelchair rugby league with the Dundee Dragons and Team Scotland, and is set to compete in wheelchair basketball, athletics (shot putt and discus) and sitting volleyball at the Games.

Michael added: “Meeting people who have similar stories to mine is great. Before I was selected for Invictus, the only other amputee I’d spoken to was my grandad, who lost his leg due to ill health. Now, suddenly, I’m speaking to other people in their 20s and 30s who have similar injuries.

“It feels like I’m back in the RAF again. My confidence has grown so much and I feel like I’m starting to enjoy life again. I’ll be taking part in sitting volleyball, wheelchair basketball, discus and shot putt which I’m really looking forward too. I’m already thinking about the 2018 Games!”

The Invictus Games were first held in 2014 in London after Prince Harry was inspired to create an expanded, international version of the US-based Warrior Games that brought together wounded, ill and injured military personnel.

This will be the third time that the Games have been held and 17 nations will take part across 11 sports.

Michael, who will be joined in Toronto by his wife, parents and kids Ryan, 12, Eve, 10, and Sarah, six, was one of 306 athletes who trialled for one of the 90 available places in the UK team.

The Games will run from tomorrow (Saturday) until September 30.