Road runner Kier Sullivan was ranked 6th in the UK in the Under 17s and was hoping to progress to an England vest in 2018 before he started suffering from recurring knee pain.

He said: “I was at a level where I was running 8 times a week and clocking about 60+ miles a week. I was working my way in to the best possible athlete I could be. I had however been suffering from a recurring knee issue for about a year and in March 2018 I took the decision to get it sorted out completely so that when I started at the University of Birmingham in September I would be injury- free and ready to train.”

Following a recommendation from his physiotherapist, Kier had a consultation with Professor Adrian Wilson and then had an MRI and an ultrasound which showed he had semi tendonitis in his knee.

Professor Wilson advised Kier to stop running for 12 weeks and to have PRP (platelet rich plasma) injections in his knee during this time.

PRP injections are performed in a treatment room using an ultrasound so the consultant can inject the plasma in the exact area which requires treatment. They take approximately 30 minutes.

Kier said: “I had my first course of injections at the beginning of April and then after a follow-up consultation with Professor Wilson I went for another set of injections in May towards the end of my 12 weeks recovery. The first set of injections needed a full 12 weeks to recover from but after the second ones I was back running in 2 weeks. I wasn’t running flat out but jogging along pain-free.”

Kier has now returned to full training and is regaining the fitness he lost when he was recovering from the injections.

“I am very happy I took the decision to see Professor Wilson to get my knee problem sorted out. It was tough to step back from sport but looking back now the injections have completely fixed me and I will hopefully be able to train and compete injury-free for years to come,” added Kier.