A nurse at Derian House Children’s Hospice in Chorley has been selected to represent Britain at the ball hockey world championships in June.
Emma Pearson, 33, will play against teams from all around the world in the International Street and Ball Hockey Federation Master’s World Championships, to be held in the Czech Republic.
The sport is the summer equivalent of ice hockey. Mum-of-one Emma can usually be found on the ice playing for Blackburn Hawks; she also captains Widnes Wild women’s team.
On top of her full-time job caring for children with life-limiting conditions, Emma trains three times a week, competes in games at weekends, and attends four CrossFit sessions every week to build stamina.
Now she will add an extra training programme to her gruelling schedule to make sure her sprinting technique is up to scratch so she is ready to take on the world.
“I train in the evenings after work and it can mean late nights” she says. “I’m also halfway through a two-year qualification at work to become an Advanced Clinical Practitioner, which is a lot of work so I’m definitely kept busy! But although I only average about four hours sleep a night I wouldn’t have it any other way. I feel better when I’ve been on the ice and I probably couldn’t cope with such a full-on job and doing my qualification without it.”
Emma’s husband Phil also plays for Widnes Wild and he coaches the women’s team. Their four-year-old son Henry has also got in on the act, learning the sport and how to figure skate.
The couple made the news recently after becoming the first husband and wife to play on the same team in a registered league game.
“For us, ice hockey is family time because we do it together. We just love it” Emma says.
Lynn Grayson, Clinical Director at Derian House Children’s Hospice, said: “We’re all so proud of Emma for her fantastic achievement of being selected to play for her country – with her on the team the others don’t stand a chance!
“Emma is a wonderful nurse who works tirelessly to help our children and their families and it’s this dedication that has also seen her taking on a really difficult qualification to become an Advanced Clinical Practitioner.
“We’ll all excited to see how she gets on in the world championships and will be behind her all the way!”
For more information visit Derian House Children’s Hospice
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