PARALYMPIAN Chris Hallam MBE will be laid to rest on Tuesday in a funeral at his hometown of Cwmbran.

Mr Hallam, who won medals for swimming and wheelchair racing at three consecutive Paralympic Games, in 1988, 1992 and 1996, died suddenly earlier this month.

The funeral will be held at St Gabriel’s Church, Old Cwmbran at 12 noon on September 3.

The family have asked for any donations in lieu of flowers to be given to Cancer Research UK.

Mr Hallam, who was in his late 40s, won the London Marathon twice, setting course records in both 1985 and 1987. He had been battling cancer and had a kidney transplant over ten years ago.

He also competed for Team Wales at the Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada in 1994.

Mr Hallam “pushed” 400 miles in 11 days around Wales, raising money for the first accessible sports centre in the country.

Along with his lifelong friend John Harris, Mr Hallam achieved his goal in 1997 by pushing 600 miles in 37 days, raising enough for the centre to be built at the (formerly named ) University of Wales Institute, Cyncoed Campus site in Cardiff.

Mr Hallam, who lived in Pontypool at the time of his death on Friday, August 16, was paralysed below the chest in a motorcycling accident, but later competed as an able-bodied swimmer. He also won the 50m breaststroke at the World Disabled Games.

After announcing his retirement from competitive sport in 1996, Mr Hallam coached other up-and-coming wheelchair racers within the Disability Sport Wales academy system.

Welsh Paralympic icon Tanni Grey-Thompson, who won 11 Paralympic gold medals and now sits in the House of Lords, said at the time of his death: “Really sad news that Chris Hallam has passed away. He was the reason we are where we are in wheelchair racing.”