Chumpy’s pregnant widow Ellidy Pullin reveals father’s stage four terminal cancer battle
She’s just weeks out from giving birth to the late Olympian’s miracle baby but the brave widow of Alex ‘Chumpy’ Pullin has secretly been battling another family heartache. HER STORY >>>
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THE pregnant widow of Alex ‘Chumpy’ Pullin is grappling with the devastating reality she may soon lose her father to stage four terminal cancer, little more than a year on from her partner’s untimely death.
Speaking on a recent episode of her podcast, Ellidy Pullin, 29, shared raw insight into how she’s coping amid the devastating prognosis during a candid chat with co-host and best friend Chloe Fisher.
It was roughly one month on from Mr Pullin’s tragic passing in July last year – the result of a suspected shallow water blackout at Palm Beach – that the already heartbroken family learned Pete Vlug was battling a stage four glioblastoma.
“(It) is basically the most aggressive cancer and stage four is the final phase,” Ms Pullin told listeners. “They said to us, this was last September, that dad would probably make it to Christmas and not too much longer but it’s been a year and he’s absolutely amazing, his mindset is just incredible.”
Ms Pullin, who recently celebrated her baby shower and is just weeks out from giving birth to the couple’s first “miracle baby,” recently learned a second tumour had been detected in her father’s brain in a tragic twist of fate.
“Mr brother and I were at a scan just last week for me, then we leave the scan and we’re getting calls from my dad and his girlfriend. We both just had a bad feeling,” she said.
The call came that the second tumour was inoperable and that it wasn’t “looking good.”
Surgery to remove parts of the initial tumour last year proved somewhat successful, with surgery credited with helping Mr Vlug beat his initial prognosis.
The devastated mum-to-be said she was taking comfort in knowing that her dad and Chumpy would soon be reunited: “Dad always says: I’ll be with Chumpy soon, it’ll be amazing, don’t even worry,” she recalled.
“(We’re) having those chats about when he’s on the other side and those signs he can send me. When you’re in my shoes this is the sh*t you hold on to.”
“It literally helps me get through, knowing that if dad’s going, he’s going to be with Chump. I can’t even believe they’re both there, but I will look for the signs and that’s what will keep me going.”
Ms Pullin said circumstances had proved particularly difficult of late as she’s unable to visit her dad in New South Wales due to border restrictions.
The gut-wrenching blow came around the same time as Mr Pullin’s 34th birthday on September 20 – the second his brave widow was forced to celebrate without him.
Earlier this year she told listeners of the race to collect his sperm post-humously in the hope of later conceiving their first child.
“It’s sunken in so much more. It’s been a year, I’ve finally kind of wrapped my head around that he’s somewhat not coming back,” Ms Pullin admitted.
“I think I’ve processed it a lot more lately. But this day, this birthday, it really hurt.”
Despite her heartache, she pushed on with a party that afternoon in honour of her longtime love: “I’ve got a baby coming, I want to celebrate Chump every year, every time we can. I’m not saying it’s going to be a party every time.”
“It’s very f**king sad and morbid. It’s just those little rituals I’ll always keep up.”
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