Archie's story
Sport-mad Archie dreams of getting to the Paralympic Games. Described by his parents as ‘fiercely competitive’, Archie says he loves all sports and enjoys pushing himself to be his best. Aged just 16, Archie currently holds a host of British men’s records – and narrowly missed out on a place at this year’s Paralympics in Paris. By continuing to work hard, in and out of the pool, and with support from Guide Dogs to help build his independence, Archie is aiming to represent his country, at the highest possible level of his sport, in 2028.
I’ve never let my vision impairment be an issue, I’ve always decided what I want to do, then pushed to do it. Sport is a massive part of my life, and I think there is a sport for everyone, you just need to give it a go.
As soon as you step foot inside the family home, set amongst rolling farmland in North Yorkshire, it’s clear how much Archie, his brother and his parents love sport. The door handle on their bathroom is a cricket ball. The mirror - an old-fashioned wooden tennis racket.
“I just really enjoy playing all sports and testing myself,” says Archie. “I compete in jujitsu which I really enjoy because I spar with everyone, not just people with a vision impairment. I also play cricket which is specially adapted for people with sight loss. It’s really nice to be in a team and messing about with friends. I also do surfing and swimming which I really enjoy and I’m good at.”
16-year-old Archie is being characteristically modest in saying he is good at swimming; he currently holds four British men’s records, breaking his first men's record at just 14-years-old. Last month, he also broke another British men’s record which had stood for 24 years, in the 100m breaststroke.
Archie’s dad, Charlie, describes his oldest son as a ‘fish’. “From the first moment of seeing Archie in the water, we realised he was incredibly good at swimming. And then that fed into his competitive nature and his tenacity to succeed. I know the hard work Archie has put into his swimming and to see him get the results he has makes us feel really proud,” says Charlie.
I started training more and more, and I really wanted to test myself so I began entering swimming competitions. After I swam in my first one, I really enjoyed it – the environment was really fun – so I started doing more. Then, putting in more hours in training, working harder in the pool and gym. It’s all grown from there.
This year, Archie was invited to trials to take part in the Paralympic Games in Paris. “It was an honour to be invited,” says Archie, “And I did pretty well too – I actually got a PB (personal best), so I was pleased with that. I was also in the call room with Adam Peaty which was really cool. I look up to him because he's a breaststroker and that’s the stroke I like swimming best. Also, I admire how he prepares for races – so to swim straight after him was pretty surreal.”
Whilst Archie didn’t make the team this year, he has been invited to and has accepted a place on, the Paralympic Inspiration Programme (PiP). He'll travel to Paris this August to learn more about the Games, and what’s involved in taking part in the future.
Archie says, “I want to get to the Paralympics – I want to get to the highest level possible with my swimming. I’m hoping to get my international classification soon and then I can complete internationally, and maybe then in the Commonwealth Games in two years’ time, and then the Paralympics in four years.”
And the scale of Archie’s ambition and success is not lost on his parents. Charlie says, “We’ve learnt so much from Archie, and normally it’s the other way around with parents and their children. It’s really hard to think about it in any other way than ‘it’s just Arch going to the Paralympics’ because he was always going to do that. He always knew he could do that and wanted to do that.”
Archie's sight loss
Archie has always been that child where nothing will get in the way, and his attitude is ''Yes, I have sight loss, but it just means I have to do things a little bit differently''. So, we just support him.
“When Archie was a baby, everything was pretty normal,” says dad Charlie. “Then around 18 months old, we noticed his eyes started wobbling. At first, it was at night, or if he was tired, but then he started doing it more and more, so we were advised to go to an eye specialist. At 20 months old he was diagnosed with having severe retinal dystrophy.”
“It was really hard because we didn’t have any guarantees of anything. We knew it was degenerative. We knew it was severe. But we didn’t know if Archie was going to lose his sight. Nobody could give us any clue about what would happen in the future.”
Charlie continues; “Today Archie is officially registered as being severely sight impaired. He is amongst a small group of people who have no light perception or cannot see light. But that didn’t happen straight away, he lost his sight in stages so first his peripheral vision went, then his night vision and eventually his central vision when he was around seven years old.”
“We found the best way we could support Archie was to not let his sight loss be a constraint for anything he wants to do. Archie has always been fiercely tenacious. He stops at nothing to win but in a very sportsman-like way.”
Knowing that Archie’s vision impairment is genetic, his parents Charlie and Bianca decided to have their genomes sequenced – a detailed mapping of their DNA.
Charlie adds; “His diagnosis of severe retinal dystrophy was so general, and when you’re a parent you want to know what this diagnosis means for your child. We learnt there was a one-in-four chance that another child of ours would have the same condition because it’s a recessive disorder. Four and a half years later, Hugo was born, and he was diagnosed with the same vision impairment - severe retinal dystrophy.”
Archie says, “We’re a really competitive family – even just small cricket matches between us turn into the ‘England World Cup’ and card games become the poker ‘World Cup’. And playing VI cricket with my brother, Hugo, means we definitely push each other to bowl better, bat better, train better.''
Support from Guide Dogs
Without Guide Dogs we wouldn’t have an independent child who just wants to do what all other 16-year-olds want to do.
Archie is currently receiving support from Guide Dogs, funded by North Yorkshire County Council. Senior Habilitation Specialist, Andrew, is working with Archie on his mobility and long cane skills as he prepares to change schools for his A levels.
Charlie says; “At 16, like all young people, he is going through that change from being a child where your parents do everything for you, to being independent and wanting to meet his friends in town or go out on his own.”
Archie continues; “At the moment I am working with Andrew on road crossings with my long cane and finding things like blister paving. I really like working with Andrew, he’s really good at taking the time to explain things to me.”
And dad Charlie says he’s noticed a big difference since Guide Dogs began supporting Archie. “He is so much more independent around the house in making his food and getting his own clothes. We have definitely seen that connection for Archie that Guide Dogs really do ‘get it’ and as parents that’s what you want. You want to know there are specialists there who can support your children.”
Archie says; “My aim is to be as independent as possible. So, I need to work on my cane skills for that. But also, I would love a guide dog in the future. I just love dogs, I think they’re amazing, and having a guide dog would just be a massive help and would mean I can do more on my own.”
Charlie concludes; “In a visually impaired world, confidence and independence are what we as parents hope Archie will gain from Guide Dogs’ support. Knowing that there is someone to ask, and someone who can take him wherever he wants to go in the future feels like a weight has been lifted off our shoulders. To have experts who can answer his questions and support him is invaluable.”