Cyclist races with prosthetic arm she helped design

A para-cyclist has claimed her first-ever world championship medal wearing a prosthetic arm she helped to design.

Morgan Newberry took silver at the 2024 UCI Road and Para-cycling Road World Championships in Zurich on Saturday, wearing a new prosthetic design that attaches and detaches to the handle of a bike.

Newberry, whose left arm was not fully developed at birth, hopes the new prosthetic will encourage people with limb differences to take up the sport.

After her achievement, the 25-year-old, of Belper, Derbyshire, said: "I don't think I would have been on that podium without my new prosthetic."

"To win silver is an enormous confidence boost," she added.

Newberry said she never used prosthetics as a child and that it was not until recently that she realised using certain tools "could make a big difference".

"Last year, I got an NHS prosthetic for the bike, but unfortunately what they could offer just did not work for me, and I found it very uncomfortable for my arm," she said.

The Great Britain cycling team member collaborated with London-based prosthetics maker Koalaa to create the tool called the "Sarah Pro".

Current and former GB paralympians, Claire Cashmore and Clare Cunningham, and amateur cyclist Sarah Fisher, helped in the design process.

Newberry said: "We all had different ideas and different angles to help find a middle ground, which is why the tool works so well.

"This arm I use now, because it is fabric-based, can move with your arm, which is the difference.

"It's given me a competitive advantage from what I had because I was just riding and just balancing my arm on the bars.

"It's nice to feel better on the bike like a person with two hands would."

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