Story
I am a retired NHS Nurse and Ward Manager from Worcestershire. I am always looking for new challenges and lived life trying to take every opportunity life presents, but at the age of 60 when the chance to ride the route of the Tour de France came along I must admit I thought this might be too much. After encouragement from my family and friends I decided that the opportunity to be part of team raising £1,000,000 for CureLeukaemia was something I could not refuse no matter what, quite literally, the road ahead might bring.
To learn more about me, and follow my training Blog, Click here - https://www.jackie-tdf.co.uk
From Friday 24 June - Sunday 17 July 2022, I am joining leukaemia survivor Geoff Thomas, the former England and Crystal Palace footballer, to cycle the full Tour de France route one week ahead of the professionals. Alongside Geoff and I, the 25 riders of The Tour 21 team will take on all 3,328 km of the 21 stages of one of the world's most gruelling sporting challenges. As a team of 25 amateur cyclists, we are committed to raising £1,000,000 for CureLeukaemia - the charity that helped save the life of Geoff, and many others.
Its hard to find anyone who has not been affected by Leukaemia, be it family, friends, work colleagues, or even directly themselves. Far too often, despite the amazing efforts of health professions, we see our loved ones loose their battle. My own son, Simon, lost a battle to a Aplastic Anaemia passing away at just 3 years old, that's why I'm determined to do my bit to raise £1,000,000.
All funds raised will be invested directly into the national Trials Acceleration Programme (TAP) network which Cure Leukaemia fund to open and run clinical trials for pioneering treatments for the disease, giving over 20 million people access to potentially life-saving treatments. I'm riding 3,328 km (2,068 miles) of one the most iconic sporting events there is, a dream come true for any cyclist, but my reward for finishing on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées will not come from what I do, but from what you do to support CureLeukaemia
Please donate knowing every pound will be invested in to saving lives.