Chipping Norton man joins footballers for CPR campaign

Nick Thomas, alongside Graeme Souness and Glenn Hoddle, is among those who have teamed up with Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation for the Every Minute Matters campaign.

The campaign is encouraging more than a quarter of a million people to earn the lifesaving skill.

In the Re-Starting 11 campaign, Mr Thomas has appeared alongside fellow cardiac arrest survivors Fabrice Muamba, Luton Town player Tom Lockyer, and Wigan Athletic striker Charlie Wyke at Wembley stadium.

Nick Thomas alongside other cardiac arrest survivors including footballers Tom Lockyer and Fabrice Muamba (Image: BHF)

The father-of-three's cardiac arrest occurred in August 2023 during a Thursday-night football match.

Mr Thomas said: "It was two minutes before the end of our weekly game when I collapsed.

"The next thing I remember is waking up in hospital.

"I discovered that three of my fellow players had carried out CPR and used a defibrillator that was on site to shock my heart.

"I was very lucky that they’d all had CPR training as part of their job."

Following his hospitalisation, Mr Thomas was placed in an induced coma and later fitted with an S-ICD (subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator) to help manage any future dangerous heart rhythms.

Since the incident, he has run training sessions teaching CPR and is a strong supporter of the Every Minute Matters campaign.

He continued: "I was in the right place at the right time with the people on hand to help – all the stars aligned in a way.

"On another day, I would have been somewhere else, and I probably wouldn’t have survived.

"That’s why I want to use my story to raise awareness of this incredibly important skill."

There are more than 30,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in the UK each year, equating to at least five every 90 minutes.

Each minute that passes without CPR reduces the chance of survival by up to 10 per cent.

The campaign aims to reach 270,000 individuals in the next 12 months, encouraging them to learn CPR using the British Heart Foundation’s digital tool, RevivR.

It also includes a fundraising objective of £3 million for the foundation’s lifesaving initiatives, started with Sky Bet’s pledge of £10,000 for every goal scored in their play-offs.

Chief executive at the British Heart Foundation, Dr Charmaine Griffiths, said: "Nick’s story is a powerful reminder that CPR saves lives.

“Together we hope we will equip thousands more fans with the knowledge and confidence to perform CPR and use a defibrillator in the crucial moments following a cardiac arrest - because in the ultimate medical emergency, every minute really does matter.”