£120k raised as 300-mile Paris cyclists end gruelling day two
DONATIONS so far have exceeded £120,000 for a group of cyclists making the 300-mile journey between London and Paris in aid of the Brain Tumour Charity.
The pack of 35 set off on Wednesday morning from Crystal Palace Sports Centre in London before covering 95 miles to be in Dover in good time to catch the ferry to Calais.
Day two saw the group travel from Calais to Abbeville through 72 miles of picturesque Normandy countryside – a task made even more challenging by the strong headwind and numerous steep climbs faced throughout. The day ended with a Tour de France-style sprint to the finish, won by Rothschild’s Tim Morris.
Another stand-out performance of the day came from the team at NorthEdge Capital (Grant Berry, Michael Joseph, Andy Ball and John Rastrick) who were dubbed as a ‘well-oiled machine’.
Today (Friday) will see the group cover 67 miles from Abbeville to Beauvais, before the final push to the finish line in Paris tomorrow.
Set up by brain tumour survivor Rob Ward, the event aims to raise awareness and money for the Brain Tumour Charity.
Rob, 40, is a director at £250m-turnover home baking supplier Doric Group, based in Cheadle Hulme.
He told TheBusinessDesk: “I was diagnosed in December 2013 before having surgery on the front left part of my brain at Salford Royal in January 2014. I was incredibly lucky – it was growing at a rate of knots but they managed to remove 100% and I’ve had no further treatment, which is quite rare.”
Rob said he was moved to take action to raise awareness and funding when he discovered that just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to brain tumours.
“People don’t know what causes it and there are issues with early diagnosis because people often present with things like headaches. I’ve never done anything like this before and lots of people in a similar situation are joining me on this journey.”
Established in 1996, the Brain Tumour Charity supports those affected by brain tumours to improve the quality of life enjoyed. This includes pioneering research and raising awareness of symptoms and effects of the disease.
You can donate to the cause on Rob’s page here: www.doitforcharity.com/ROBERTWARD
