Quadriplegic ex rugby player raises money by climbing 'Everest' up stairs

Ed Jackson raises over 41,000 pounds scaling 5,566 flights of stairs with 89,058 steps on one working leg in four days.

SHOWS: BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (WINGS FOR LIFE - ACCESS ALL) 1.

QUADRIPLEGIC FORMER PROFESSIONAL RUGBY PLAYER ED JACKSON FINISHING HIS CHALLENGE OF SCALING THE EQUIVALENT OF MOUNT EVEREST BY WALKING UP AND DOWN HIS PARENTS' STAIRS BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 2.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER PROFESSIONAL RUGBY PLAYER, ED JACKSON, SAYING: "So, I wanted to climb something and I went in the other day and obviously saw captain Tom doing what he's doing in his garden and was pretty inspired by that and the fund raising that he had done, he had managed to do and the positive he had managed to make out of a potentially negative situation.

I just thought right it's time to stop supporting from the sofa and try pull my finger out and do something myself.

I thought I was going to climb the height of Snowden up and down my parents' stairs which would have taken till about lunchtime.

But, as the way my brain works it soon escalated and I've been camping in their living room for four days climbing Everest, which I've just finished thank god." BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 21, 2020) (WINGS FOR LIFE - ACCESS ALL) 3.

JACKSON WALKING UP AND DOWN A FLIGHT OF STAIRS BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 4.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER PROFESSIONAL RUGBY PLAYER, ED JACKSON, SAYING: "I've loved it all.

It's been painful, it's been monotonous, it's been boring at times but most of the time to be honest with you, it's been a lot of fun with all the people who've got involved and just seeing that fund raising total go way past where we ever sort of dreamed of has been pretty inspiring.

I'm glad whenever this lockdown ends, I know that I've sort of done something positive you know.

And created some sort of positive out of this negative situation." BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 21, 2020) (WINGS FOR LIFE - ACCESS ALL) 5.

VIEW OF JACKSON WALKING UP A FLIGHT OF STAIRS BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 6.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER PROFESSIONAL RUGBY PLAYER, ED JACKSON, SAYING: "Yeah, so I haven't checked the latest (fund raising) total, but I think according to, well without, with gift aid added on, I think we've raised forty-grand so far, which is unbelievable.

You know, we set out, I thought it was quite ambitious to go for two-grand.

So, yeah, incredible." BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 21, 2020) (WINGS FOR LIFE - ACCESS ALL) 7.

JACKSON WALKING UP A FLIGHT OF STAIRS BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 8.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER PROFESSIONAL RUGBY PLAYER, ED JACKSON, SAYING: "My right leg, I have to do the whole thing pretty much just using one leg because of my injury, my left side of my body doesn't really work very well.

So, that was an added difficulty, but I've also got no sensation down my right side so, it might be in a lot of pain, but I wouldn't know.

So, that's a bonus I suppose." BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 21, 2020) (WINGS FOR LIFE - ACCESS ALL) 9.

VARIOUS OF JACKSON WALKING UP STAIRS (2 SHOTS) BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 10.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) FORMER PROFESSIONAL RUGBY PLAYER, ED JACKSON, SAYING: "It's just been like a bizarre week you know.

It's like I was just going to climb up and down my parents' stairs for a few hours and raise a couple of quid.

Now it's like escalated a bit, so, yeah, it's been great, been fun.

I don't want to go ever up that flight of stairs again though." BATH, ENGLAND, UK (APRIL 24, 2020) (WINGS FOR LIFE - ACCESS ALL) 11.

JACKSON CELEBRATING BY DRINKING OUT OF A CHAMPAGNE BOTTLE STORY: Quadriplegic former professional rugby player Ed Jackson has scaled the height of Mount Everest by hauling himself up and down the stairs of his parents' house and raised more than 41,000 pounds ($50,647.30) for charity.

It took Jackson four days to climb 5,566 flights of stairs with 89,058 steps on one working leg, dragging himself up and down for 12 hours a day to get a target of 8,848 metres.

The 31-year-old, who suffered a spinal cord injury three years ago, completed his target on Friday (April 24) to raise money for Britain's National Health Service affiliated charity, Forever Friends, and spinal cord research foundation, Wings for Life.

"It's been a crazy, weird and wonderful and something completely different," he told Reuters after finishing.

"I loved it despite it being painful, monotonous and boring at times but most of the time it's been a lot of fun.

Seeing the fund raised going way past what we dreamed it would has been inspiring." Jackson said he wanted to do something positive during the COVID-19 crisis but did not know why he chose the daunting target of matching the height of Mount Everest.

"I don't know but I've had a bit of an affinity with mountains since my accident even though I find it quite hard to walk uphills!" "Being in the outdoors has helped with my mental and physical recovery," he added.

Jackson, a former England youth international, broke his neck diving into a swimming pool in 2017.

He kept in the spirit of the climb by camping out in his parents' living room in Bath.

"I had to do it really on one leg because the left side of my body doesn't really work very well, so that was an added difficulty, but I've also got no sensation on my right side.

"It might be a lot of pain but I wouldn't know.

That's a bonus I suppose." (Production: Stefan Haskins / Mark Gleeson)