A British lesbian Paralympian says she was forced to drag herself off a flight after being left on a plane. Claire Harvey was traveling home nursing a shoulder injury she received competing in both the discuss and javelin events at the Paralympic World Championships in Doha, Qatar. Qatar Airways is the official airline of the World Championships however the Paralympian says she had to use the seats “like monkey bars” and “drag” herself down 49 rows to exit the aircraft. Describing it as a “completely humiliating” experience Harvey told BBC Radio 4 that not only was she given an aisle seat forcing the passengers next to her to “literally climb over me”, a staff member at the departure gate had called her “the wheelchair” while talking to a colleague. “A steward said 'You have to leave now' and started to manhandle me. I was 49 rows back. I ended up having to utilise the seats either side of the aisle almost like monkey bars, taking my weight on my hands and dragging myself to the front, with him pushing me to go faster,” she told the station.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Saturday, 14th November 2015 - 12:03pm