Overview
- Joshua Breene, 23, completed the Bath Half Marathon in March 2026 to raise money for the British Heart Foundation.
- He had collapsed from a sudden cardiac arrest less than a kilometre from the Birmingham Half finish in May 2025 and was unconscious for about five minutes.
- Fellow runner Lloyd Heckler, a physiotherapist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, performed CPR until paramedics arrived in an effort credited with saving Breene’s life.
- Hospital tests found an atrial flutter, doctors corrected the rhythm with a procedure after which he spent six days in hospital, and he returned to running only after months of scans and graded exercise.
- The British Heart Foundation is urging people to learn CPR through its free 15‑minute RevivR online tool, using Breene’s survival as a clear example of why quick action matters.