A St Mary’s University student who never envisaged himself being involved in sport is aiming to inspire others at the upcoming Invictus Games in Canada.
Christopher Bryde served in the US Marine Corps for five years until his vehicle drove over a Taliban IED in Afghanistan and although the former turret gunner’s time in the armed forces ended there, his passion for service did not.
Alongside his studies in Twickenham, the 36-year-old has dedicated himself to pursuing new sporting challenges, something he could not have imagined when he was growing up in Alaska.
Bryde, who is training at The Lensbury ahead of the Games from 8-16 February, said: “We were poor, we lived in a rural area.
“Our sports were hunting and fishing, which makes it kind of awkward because my father-in-law is [former Newcastle United and Sheffield Wednesday professional footballer] Ray Blackhall.
“I don’t know anything about that stuff, I don’t understand American football either. I’ll get involved, but [for me] it’s more about supporting or helping with the community.”
It was this selfless mindset and tendency towards service which got Bryde involved in sport and the Invictus Games.
He said: “When I first started applying for [the Games], at the time my unit [Second Battalion, Seventh Marines Regiment] had the highest suicide rate of any American unit.
“We lost substantially more guys to suicide than we ever did to combat.
“So myself and quite a few other leaders in our unit were trying to do different things and throw retreats. I thought, maybe this will be another thing I can do to encourage people to not give up.”
Bryde has thrown himself into sporting life as a result and will compete in wheelchair rugby, indoor rowing, biathlon and swimming in February’s first-ever Winter Invictus Games, which are being held in Vancouver.
He said: “The Marines were very focused on like service and all that sort of thing, but then after that’s over, it’s so intense in the Infantry Marine Corps that you can never really find that in the civilian world.
“So it’s kind of hard to get latched on, which I think is probably part of the reason I do so many different things.”
In addition to sport, Bryde’s studies at St Mary’s University have seen him earn distinction in his Masters, get his PhD proposal approved (creative writing, under the umbrella of English Language and Literature), and is part of the wheelchair rugby team he started with rugby league coach Kevin Rudd.
He released his debut novel Upgunner in September, a semi-autobiographical work which follows the experience of protagonist Marine Corporal Brodie.
Bryde said: “I’d say there’s quite a bit of [the writing process] that wasn’t enjoyable.
“It took almost 16 years after the explosion to actually be able to finish it and work up the courage to publish it.
“There were parts of it that were very difficult. I found that what worked for me is I started out by just writing the worst memories first, and then working from there.
“Then, over time, there was a certain amount of enjoyment because it became a thing where you’re taking a negative thing and you’re turning it into a positive thing.
“Rather than before I hadn’t worked on it, it was just negative stuff. I talked to therapists and still they never really turned [the trauma] into anything positive.”
It was a therapeutic experience for the veteran, who grew more enthusiastic as he spoke.
He said: “I absolutely encourage veterans or any victims of trauma to work on constructive writing.
“Not just writing something negative, but think about how can I make this into a positive thing?”
It is a mantra that Bryde doesn’t just leave on the page.
Looking to the future he wants to lecture, inspired by the qualities of his lecturers at university.
He said: “I’ve just been trying to figure out how to remain useful and give back, but also be useful in areas that I’m needed.”
“It’d be nice to lecture, at least part time. My lecturers at St. Mary’s in creative writing, they’re really excellent people, and I see them really as public servants.
“They really give back so much, so I’d like to do that, and hopefully pass some of that kind of thing on to future students.”
Despite his novel becoming Amazon number-one bestseller in the Afghan War History category, Bryde would like to pivot after he finishes the sequel.
He said: “I’d like to write a fantasy novel someday. I’m a big Tolkien fan.
“I basically learned how to read because the Lord of the Rings movies were coming out, and I thought I needed to read the books before that, so I forced myself to sort of learn by reading those.
“I mean, I’m incredibly dyslexic. I didn’t really know how to read too well until I was about 14 and even then I’m pretty slow.”
Before this, Bryde is set to make his Invictus Games debut. He hopes to medal at least in wheelchair rugby where he believes the team has a good chance.
This is not a one-time thing either as he already has his eyes on the summer tournament in Birmingham 2027.
Bryde said: “It’d be nice to get into that one and do some of the other sports and hopefully by then, I think I might be able to run again by that point.
“So it’d be nice to run at the Invictus Games and do that.
“Even if I don’t win a medal, it’d be cool to do it. It might be the last time I ever run.”
The training has also been enjoyable.
Bryde said: “Rowing is a great sport. If you can do it on the river, it’s a little bit nicer than in the gym.
“The great thing about a sport like that is, sometimes I roll all the way up to Hampton Court Palace.
“It’s quite far, but you have to come back, so you’re forcing yourself to have more of a workout. So that’s a great sport that anyone can do, I’m fairly disabled and I do it well.
“Wheelchair rugby, I think anyone should give that a try. It’s a good bit of fun and it’s always a really positive community.”
Over the course of the conversation it dawned on him that his previous claim that he is not a sporty guy is not really ringing true anymore.
Even though he started training in order to inspire, it is also something he really enjoys.
Bryde said: “It’s what I’ve got left with my life, to try and be a positive thing.
“I don’t necessarily need to work, so I’m trying to just do as much positive stuff as I can.”
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