Premier League’s first black referee Uriah Rennie learning to walk again after rare condition left him paralysed

FORMER Premier League referee Uriah Rennie has opened up about the rare condition that left him paralysed from the waist down.

Once described as the “fittest” referee in England’s top division, the 65-year-old is now learning to walk again.

Uriah Rennie has revealed he is learning to walk againCredit: Getty

The 65-year-old has been diagnosed with a rare neurological conditionCredit: AlamyAfter experiencing intense back pain while on holiday in Turkey last year, Rennie was admitted to Northern General Hospital in October.

He told the BBC: “I thought I had just slept funny on a sun lounger, I was hoping to go paragliding but because of my backache I couldn’t go.

“By the end of the holiday I couldn’t sleep a wink from the pain, and by the time I got home I could barely walk.

“I spent a month laid on my back and another four months sitting in bed.

“They kept me in hospital until February, they found a nodule pushing on my spine and it was a rare neurological condition so it’s not something they can operate on.

“I have had to learn to move all over again, I’m retraining my legs.”

He continued: “It was strange – I went from running around the city to in essence being in traction for such a long time.

“I didn’t have any previous back problems but quite suddenly I wasn’t able to move and was in a spinal unit.”

Having been a magistrate in Sheffield since 1996 and campaigned for issues such as improving equality and inclusion in sport, Rennie was on the verge of starting a new role as Sheffield Hallam University chancellor when he first went into hospital.

He now spends much of his time in physiotherapy and completing movement exercises at his home.

Describing his current state of movement, he said: “I can move my feet and I can stand with a frame attached to my wheelchair but I need to work on my glutes.

“I rock around in my chair doing my exercises, I’m a very good, compliant patient.

“It has been frustrating but family and friends have been invaluable, the hospital was absolutely superb and the university has been exceptional.”

Half a year on from his hospital admission, Rennie is now due to start his role as a university chancellor next month.

And he is determined not to give up on walking again.

He concluded: “Lots of people are in wheelchairs, but it doesn’t define them.

“It has made me resilient and forceful and I will never give up – I’m not on my own, there is a village helping me.

“I recognise how brittle things are in life now.

“I don’t know if I am going to walk fully, but I know what I need to do to try and you must never give up hope.”

Rennie made history in 1997 when he became the Premier League’s first black referee, officiating a match between Derby County and Wimbledon.

He is also a kick-boxing and aikido expert.