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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Donald McRae

‘They’re not alone’: Chris Hoy on his ambition to stop men dying of prostate cancer

Sir Chris Hoy witting on a table
Sir Chris Hoy: ‘It’s so isolating when you get a cancer diagnosis. You’re suddenly on borrowed time.’ Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian

Sir Chris Hoy arrives a couple of minutes late and the apologies roll from him. I don’t have a chance to tell the six‑time Olympic sprint cycling champion that waiting an hour for a star interviewee is more common. Hoy is already deep into a story about how he and his wife, Sarra, were walking here when an unknown man stopped him on the street in Glasgow.

The stranger had recently been diagnosed with prostate cancer and he wanted to share what had happened to him and, I suspect, find new strength by talking to a compassionate public figure. Hoy has lived a full life with stage 4 cancer for nearly three years. He has also worked tirelessly to highlight the fact that prostate cancer affects more men in this country than any other cancer while, at the same time, to offer a tangible sense of hope when there is horror for men, and their families, after a terminal diagnosis.

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