Bike champion battled cancer and coronavirus
Wife’s tribute to a racing winner and a true ‘warrior’
A former British biking champion has died aged 49.
Carl Bell, from Maidstone, who won a cup at the British Sidecar Championships, alongside Tony “Char” Penfold, in 2004.
The father who worked as a builder, had testicular cancer and had been receiving chemotherapy but also caught Covid19 in March.
Mr Bell’s wife, Belinda, says her husband first went into hospital with stomach pains in June 2019 but was told they were caused by his appendix, which was removed. The cancer diagnosis came in November. He had chemotherapy and an operation to remove the tumours and his kidney, but in March he caught Covid-19 and the cancer had spread to other parts of his body.
As his health deteriorated he had to be put on a ventilator. After 13 days in intensive care, he decided to stop treatment and died on Friday, June 12.
Mr Bell moved to West Malling as a child.
In his teenage years, he used to DJ, hosting 80s and disco nights across Kent.
As his love of racing grew, Mr Bell began competing, and was crowned winner of the lefthand 1000cc grass track race at the British Sidecar Championships in 2004, alongside various other accolades over the years. Mrs Bell met her husband online in 2012 and the pair married four years later at Brands Hatch Place Hotel.
Mrs Bell said: “He was a warrior throughout his treatment - he would never complain. He used to say one in two people get cancer and he was glad he was the one of us who got it.” An inquest into his death will be held in September.
Mr Bell also leaves a son and two step daughters and three granddaughters.