Marks and Spencer commercial properties are taking on a huge cycling challenge to raise money for charity, and celebrities such as Ronan Keating and Gaby Roslin are backing participants all the way to the finish line. Three cancer charities will benefit from the sponsorship money raised, and Marks and Spencer hope that the amount of money raised will top £1 million, raising the bar on the £1 million they raised for the charities last year.
The “Bike 400 Cycle Challenge” will take place on Saturday 30th June at the Prodrive Race Track, a leisure commercial property in Kenilworth, Warwickshire. Over the course of 24 hours, 600 employees from Marks and Spencer commercial properties will participate in an endurance event, competing to finish first in relay-style teams of four. Each cyclist will pedal frantically for six hours, covering 100 miles of the track. Altogether, that makes over 60,000 miles cycled by the commercial property staff – or, to put it another way, over 60 times the distance from John O’Groats to Land’s End!
To celebrate the mammoth challenge undertaken by their co-workers, Marks and Spencer stores in the UK and Ireland will be holding their own fund raising events. These will take place in the retail commercial properties from June 1st to August 31st, allowing members of the public to donate to the three charities and sponsor the cyclists taking part.
Marks and Spencer’s Executive Director of Multi-Channel, E-commerce, is Laura Wade-Gery, who will also be the leader of one of the 150 teams taking part. She is excited about the challenge ahead, saying; “I’m delighted to be joining so many employees in getting involved in this summer’s cycle challenge.
“Whether it’s planning fund-raising in store, or sponsoring participants online or training for the track, there is a chance for everyone to be involved.
“We’re all gearing up for the main event and the enthusiasm and support from our employees and customers will help us get to the finish line.”
Director of Retail at Marks and Spencer, Steve Rowe, added; “2012 is going to be a unique summer and we want to make it one to remember with our biggest and most ambitious charity challenge to date – with the aim of raising over £1 million for these three truly worthwhile charities.”
Last year, senior employees from Marks and Spencer hit the headlines in the “5 Peaks Charity Challenge”. The 35-strong group left their commercial properties behind as they travelled around the UK and Ireland, climbing the highest peaks in Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in just 48 hours.
This raised one million pounds for the three cancer charities that the company have worked in partnership with over the years, which are: Breakthrough Breast Cancer, in Great Britain; Action Cancer, from Northern Ireland; and the Marie Keating Foundation, which supports cancer patients in the Republic of Ireland.
Ronan Keating, singer and co-founder of the Marie Keating Foundation, said; “My family and I set up the Marie Keating Foundation after we lost our mother to cancer 14 years ago.
“I certainly never thought I would undertake challenges such as climbing Mount Kilimanjaro or swimming the Irish Sea, all in the name of cancer awareness, and I am sure none of the M&S staff thought they would get on a bike for 24 hours to do the same.
“All I can say is a huge thank you to everyone involved and to M&S for supporting us over the past 10 years.”
Gaby Roslin, patron of Breakthrough Breast Cancer, is another famous face backing the commercial property chain’s charitable challenge. She says; “Marks & Spencer has been a key supporter of Breakthrough Breast Cancer for over 10 years.
“As a long-term supporter of Breakthrough myself, I am thrilled to be supporting M&S Bike 400 Cycle Challenge.
“The money raised from this incredible challenge will make a huge difference; helping to save the lives of the 48,000 women diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year.”
If you would like to donate to the commercial property chain’s cause, visit their JustGiving page and give as much or as little as you can. Otherwise, pop into your local Marks and Spencer commercial property and join in the fundraising fun!
