Tricia hasn’t spent Race Across the World prize money as her husband becomes double amputee

Despite almost a year since filming of the series ended, Race Across the World winner Tricia has said she is still yet to spend her share of the £20,000 prize money as her husband has become a double amputee.

Tricia was crowned alongside childhood best friend Cathie in last night’s episode as they became the first pair to reach the Lighthouse on Cape Spear in Newfoundland, Canada.

Although we’ve been sitting down to watch it every Wednesday for the past two months, filming took place between May and July last year with the contestants not able to tell anybody what they’d been up to for three months bar their immediate family.

Halfway through the 16,000 kilometre trek across Canada, Tricia found out her husband Mattie’s kidney transplant had failed.

She told The Tab: “He was a kidney transplantee, he had a transplant about 16 year ago and that failed while we were in Canada so he was put on dialysis. He’s still on dialysis now so he’s waiting for a kidney.

“Unfortunately, with kidney failure comes diabetes and vascular disease so unfortunately he has now had to have both his legs amputated due to the diabetes and vascular disease.”

Tricia, who herself has chromo retinopathy uveitis – a serious eye condition, has remained upbeat. “He’s getting his prosthetics legs next week which he’s really looking forward to. 

“He’s got a mobility scooter which he’s now going to literally race down the road against me.

“Mentally he’s in a really good place and physically he’s getting there.”

All this has meant plans to spend the prize money have been put on pause.

Tricia said she plans to spend the money once husband Mattie’s condition is “stabilised” and then they plan to go away together on a couple’s holiday.

Bucking the trend of previous winners giving the prize money away to charity, Cathie also said she’s going to spend her share of the prize money on a holiday.

Cathie, who co-owns a chain of pharmacies with her husband in south Wales, said: “ It will be a holiday, it will be more of a travelling experience with my husband and our two children – although they aren’t children any more – and for them to be able to experience some travelling as well.”

The pair said they didn’t feel any pressure to donate their prize money to charity despite retired PE teachers, Tony and Elaine doing so in series one, and series two winners Emon and Jamiul also doing the same.

“Emon set the bar quite high,” Cathie admitted.

“But Trish and I do an awful lot of fundraising anyway, we do lot of challenges and we plan to do further fundraising later on this year.”

Tricia, who now works for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) as a community connections coordinator said the pair raised £15,000 for the charity last year and intend to do the same again this year.

Congratulating them on their win, Vivienne Francis, Chief Social Change Officer at RNIB said: “Congratulations Trish and Cathie on winning Race Across the World. You have displayed resilience and good humour throughout your journey across Canada.

“Trish, your RNIB colleagues have been right behind you as you changed perceptions and increased understanding of the barriers faced by blind and partially sighted people every day, encouraging millions of viewers to see differently about sight loss.”

All episodes of Race Across The World are currently available on iPlayer. For all the latest reality TV and entertainment news and gossip, like Pop Culture Shrine on Facebook. 

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Featured image via BBC