Former Newcastle Knights player Alex McKinnon has married his long-term partner Teigan Power in the NSW Hunter Valley, rising to his feet, as he promised her he would do.
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Ms Power revealed the wedding date to her Instagram followers on Saturday night alongside a photo of the couple, confirming they would tie the knot on Sunday.
"Tomorrow is the day we say 'I do' to the rest of our lives," she wrote. McKinnon shared the same photo of the couple with the message "not long now".
The two were married in front of family and friends after McKinnon fulfilled his promise to rise from his wheelchair on their wedding day. Brisbane Broncos skipper Darius Boyd was McKinnon's best man.
The then 22-year-old's promising national rugby league career was cut short when he suffered a devastating spinal cord injury playing for the Newcastle Knights in March 2014.
McKinnon spent four weeks in intensive care following the sickening tackle.
He then spent six months in Sydney undergoing rehabilitation and five months on the Gold Coast.
“I consider myself very lucky to be improving,” he told the Newcastle Herald in July this year.
“I believe I would be doing exercise no matter what, it’s in my routine and it’s just who I am. But to see that we are improving and to get that boost along the way and get that positive reinforcement that what you’re doing is right is a massive motivator.”
When McKinnon, 25, proposed to Teigan Power in April 2014, he set himself a goal of walking with her back down the aisle after their October wedding.
“Over the last three years I’ve done as much as I can and I’ll continue to work hard – Teigan knows how hard I work in regards to my rehab,” he said in July.
“At the moment walking down the aisle is physically not possible but essentially I’d love to be standing there down the aisle. With the effort she’s seen me put into the rehab I’m sure she’d be more than happy with that.”