‘Space is for everyone’: British paralympian on course to be ESA’s first disabled astronaut

John McFall has been announced as the European Space Agency’s first disabled astronaut.

The British Paralympian, 41, from Surrey, will join the ESA’s training programme.

Mr McFall, who lost his leg in a motorbike accident when he was 19, could be the first disabled person to go to space.

The sprinter was among 22,500 candidates who applied for a spot.

He will join the training corps as part of a feasibility study to define “the necessary adaptations of space hardware in an effort to enable these otherwise excellently qualified professionals to serve as professional crew members.”

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