Martin Bodle: 'I Never Imagined My LCFC Experience Would Be This Good'

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Martin Bodle: 'I Never Imagined My LCFC Experience Would Be This Good'

Lifelong Foxes fan Martin Bodle has praised the Football Club’s work ahead of the dedicated Disability Matters fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

2023-04-21T11:42:00.000Z

by Admin

Published

21 Apr, 2023

Martin Bodle: 'I Never Imagined My LCFC Experience Would Be This Good'

Lifelong Foxes fan Martin Bodle has praised the Football Club’s work ahead of the dedicated Disability Matters fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Admin

2023-04-21T11:42:00.000Z

Martin Bodle: 'I Never Imagined My LCFC Experience Would Be This Good'

Lifelong Foxes fan Martin Bodle has praised the Football Club’s work ahead of the dedicated Disability Matters fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Admin

2023-04-21T11:42:00.000Z

Martin Bodle: 'I Never Imagined My LCFC Experience Would Be This Good'

Lifelong Foxes fan Martin Bodle has praised the Football Club’s work ahead of the dedicated Disability Matters fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Admin

2023-04-21T11:42:00.000Z

Martin Bodle: 'I Never Imagined My LCFC Experience Would Be This Good'

Lifelong Foxes fan Martin Bodle has praised the Football Club’s work ahead of the dedicated Disability Matters fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Admin

2023-04-21T11:42:00.000Z

_- Leicester City are celebrating the Disability Matters campaign against Wolverhampton Wanderers__- The fixture will highlight the Club’s disability offering and the work of the Disability Support Association (DSA)__- City fan and wheelchair user Martin Bodle has shared his King Power Stadium experience with the Club_

An initiative highlighting the Club’s disability offering, the game will see City’s players support the campaign by meeting LCFC Disability Support Association (DSA) members ahead of the match before warming up in Disability Matters t-shirts.

The LCFC DSA, who work with the Club to promote the needs of supporters with disabilities, are an independent and voluntary non-profit organisation, self-funded by membership fees and fundraising.

And Martin, a wheelchair user who has vascular disease, has told LCFC.com of his admiration for the work being done by the Club to help supporters with disabilities.

He commented: “The more and more I’ve got to know people at the Club, the more I realise how much they care and the work they do to help us.

“I never imagined for a second that it’d be as good as this. There’s a real intensity to the work, and the Club do their best to cater for everybody. It’s just outstanding.

“As a fan, the general experience is fantastic. The stewards really stand out for me, they’re amazing and I can’t fault them at all.

“I’ve got to know a lot of them and they’re really engaging, and you sort of become friends with them.

“They look out for you all the time, and if there’s ever a problem they come and help you straight away. They’re wonderful.”

Explaining his story, the 66-year-old developed vascular disease 12 years ago and is now reliant on his wheelchair most of the time.

“It was around 12 years or so ago now, and it really shocked me,” he told us. “Things then got bad about five years ago when I started to get ulcers on my left foot.

“They were nasty and very painful, and I almost ended up losing my foot. Thankfully it didn’t get to that though and here I am now.

“Walking is an issue for me though, and I’m continuously in pain. It’s just one of those things you learn to manage, and you just get on with life.

“I’m obviously a lot more restricted these days with having to rely on a wheelchair most of the time and I can’t do half the things I used to be able to.

“You compensate though and find other ways of doing things. I’m still very lucky I suppose because I don’t need a wheelchair 24/7 yet, but my leg will only get worse and eventually I will lose it.”

Despite this, Martin remains positive and says the support received from the Club’s Disability Liaison Officer Anna Dickman and the wider staff team has been greatly appreciated.

He added: “I’m 66 now and attended my first Leicester City game when I was seven years old. I’m a lifelong supporter and have many happy memories of Filbert Street, and of course here at King Power Stadium.

“Everybody has been so supportive, and I can’t thank the Club enough. They’re brilliant at what they do.

“My experiences here have only been positive, and I must also say the staff in the Foxes Fanstore have been great too.

“They’re very knowledgeable and helpful. If they see you’re in a wheelchair, it’s almost as if they make a beeline for you straight away and go out of their way to support.”

For all Leicester City accessibility and disability enquiries, please call Anna Dickman on 0116 229 4540 or email disability@lcfc.co.uk. To find out more about the Disability Support Association, please click here.

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