Former All Blacks winger Jonah Lomu is running again, less than two months after having a kidney transplant.
"I'm feeling better more and more each day," Lomu, 29, told Television New Zealand on Monday. "I believe I really still have a lot to offer rugby but first and foremost I've got to make sure I'm in good shape."
Lomu has lost 13.5kg since he received the kidney transplant from his good friend, Wellington radio announcer Grant Kiriama, in late July. Kidney disease overtook him early in 2003.
From a hobbling wreck of a man who spent up to six hours a day hooked up to a dialysis machine as he battled nephrotic syndrome, Lomu is now rejoicing at being able to feel his toes.
He had suffered numbness and tingling all over his legs from the side-effects of the dialysis.
"That's stopped now. It's improved all down my legs and into my feet and now I can stand on my toes - and for a long time," Lomu said.
"Not only can I walk properly again, I can also run and I'm getting more and more confident every day."
Lomu, a giant of a winger, dominated the 1995 World Cup where he scored four tries against England in the semi-finals. He was leading try-scorer in the 1999 tournament but was unable to play in the 2003 tournament because of his illness.
Asked if he had felt depressed during the 14 months on dialysis, Lomu said: "I was confident about it all and I just thought 'it was the best it was going to be, so deal with it'."
As for the kidney donor, Lomu said: "I didn't ring him - he rang me. He asked me what blood type I was and we matched and he said 'who do I see?'
"You don't know who your friend is until he turns up with a kidney. He didn't want anything, he just did it."
Lomu said Kiriama had also recovered well from the transplant operation.
