My mission is accomplished

Brain injury ex-boxer Michael walks miracle mile for charity

- PATRICK HILL

INCH by inch and clearly in huge pain, former boxer Michael Watson bravely walked what has been dubbed his miracle mile.

The monumental effort took the kind of inspirational spirit that helped him fight back from a near-fatal blood clot on his brain in 1991. After completing the charity walk yesterday, the 60-year-old declared: “Mission accomplished.”

He was physically supported almost constantly along the route by his pal Chris Eubank - the man he was fighting when he suffered his devastating injuries 34 years ago.

Michael, who was in a coma for 40 days after the bout and was told he would never walk again, completed the mile in just under two hours.

His nickname in the ring was the Force, and moments after finishing the charity challenge he told the Mirror: “The Force is back. I feel like I've done a marathon.”

PAIN

With about 100 supporters joining him and cheering him on, he completed the walk near Admiralty Arch on the Mall in Central London after starting in Green Park.

He smiled as he joked: “It was like a walk in the park.”