Apologise? What for?

I was quite startled to see that our Paralympian, while thanking everyone for their support, also saw the need to apologise for the fact that he was not placed in the Rio wheelchair marathon.

Simon Lawson raced 26 miles in sweltering heat with a broken water dispenser. How he did not end up in hospital is of more surprise than the fact that he did not win.

We will all be looking forward to Tokyo but, in the meantime, we have the chance today, to let him personally know how proud we are, when we can turn out and see him perform a lap of honour in Maryport.

Just to remind you, he will be parading from Netherhall School to the town hall on Senhouse Street from 10am. I am sure Maryport will be there in force but Simon is West Cumbria’s Paralympic hero, so I hope many from other areas will join us.

The town council has organised the events and invited schools. Following the parade there will be a presentation to Simon from the council.

But, while we have the chance to fete a hero, what is life on a daily basis like for him and other disabled people?

Television’s Channel 4 did a wonderful job of bringing us the Paralympics but they also went deeper and did a series of programmes on the legacy of Rio and London.

And, sadly, that legacy is not as great as one would hope.

The elite athletes have become household names – Hannah Cockroft, David Weir, Jonny Peacock, Ellie Simmonds and Richard Whitehead.

Angela Taylor, from Maryport, still can’t take her mobility scooter on a Northern Rail train unless she can fold it up - even though it is not larger than a big pram or wheelchair.

As she says: “If I could stand to fold it up I wouldn’t need it.”

When I came to the UK I was quite surprised at how many buildings were inaccessible to wheelchair users. But I also realised that this country had difficulties not faced in the “new World”. Some of the buildings are so old that adapting them would be extremely difficult.

At least most now have a system where if you can’t get in, you can ring a bell and someone will come to you. It’s not ideal to discuss your business on the street but it does mean someone is making an effort.

Access to buildings is not even the greatest problem disabled people face.

Even now, in the enlightened 21st Century, it is the attitude of people that can cause the greatest hurt.

On one of the Channel 4 programmes a woman, whose disabilities include facial disfigurement, was told by a stranger she should stay at home because “your face makes me feel sick”.

I was totally shocked to learn, too, that disabled people are more likely to be the victims of crime.

Tragically and infuriatingly, hate crime is on the rise. In fact, it was reported last year that hate crime against disabled people had risen by 41 per cent and experts said that was the tip of the iceberg.

During a pre-Rio interview, Simon Lawson told me he did not enjoy the “super human” tag given the athletes by Channel 4. It somehow suggests that Paralympians have something extra.

“We do what all athletes do - we work hard, we train hard. We have to do everything they do,” he said.

He is right. Paralympians are just people. And so is Angela Taylor in Maryport who will never run a marathon. So is Joe Bloggs down the road with a learning difficulty. So is the neighbour who has Dwarfism or the guy who lost his legs and an arm in Afghanistan.

We should turn out in force today to welcome Simon Lawson home and to celebrate that a man from Maryport made it to Rio.

But today, tomorrow and forever more, we should also question our attitude to the disabled - whether being tempted to park in a disabled parking bay, talking over the head of someone in a wheelchair, or turning our faces away in disgust because someone doesn’t look the same as us.