12-year-old wheelchair motorcross athlete becomes first UK male to land a BACKFLIP

A 12-year-old Brit lad has become the first in UK to perform a backflip in a wheelchair.Show more

Benjamin Sleet was born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus and has always used a wheelchair to get around.

He was introduced to wheelchair motor cross (WCMX) aged eight at a skateboard jam event, but his skills really took off when he got his hands on a specialist skate chair.

After just a few months of practising by landing in a foam pit, brave Benjamin just "gave it a go" and landed a backflip at the skate park earlier this month.

He's the youngest ever Brit - and the first male from the UK - to pull off the feat.

Wheelchair motor cross sees athletes perform tricks usually seen in skateboarding and BMX and was invented by Aaron Fotheringham, 30, from Las Vegas.

Ben from Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, said: “I was shocked at first and then I felt excited – it wasn’t really scary.

“I didn’t know I was going to do it, I just decided I was going to have a go.

“I had a couple of friends there and they were excited for me - I’ve wanted to do it for about a year.

“You need loads of speed to be able to flip yourself over – start quite high and go over the edge and push down.