Mary Margaret Meade, Ian O'Neill, Dr Tadhg MacIntyre, and Michael Currie from the Ulster Sports Academy get the cycle for Haiti underway.
In a cross campus effort to help Oxfam International with its humanitarian work in Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake, staff and students are taking part in a fundraising cycle today.
The goal is to 'cycle' round the perimeter of Haiti – a distance of approximately 2131 km by clocking up the miles on stationary bikes.
The event is being organised jointly by the School of Sports Studies, Sport and Recreation Services and Sports Academy. Stationary bikes will be available from 10 am to 5 pm in the Mall at both the Jordanstown and Coleraine campuses and in the foyer of the main building at the Magee campus.
Professor Marie Murphy Head of the School of Sports Studies, said:
"Like everyone, we in the Sports Academy have watched the plight of the Haitian people in the aftermath of the earthquake. Dr Tadhg MacIntyre came up with the idea of a cycling event to raise funds and Mr Ian O’Neill from Sport & Recreation Services immediate took up the challenge and mobilised staff across 3 campuses to join in the fundraising effort.
"We’re asking staff and students to volunteer their services on Thursday to help raise as much money as possible. Ideally this would consist of 30 minutes cycling and 30 minutes collecting with a bucket – although we’re happy to accommodate other combinations, depending on fitness levels and other commitments.
With many of the half hour slots throughout the day already filled, extra bikes will now be in place to enable as many as possible participate.
Professor Murphy continues: “Initially we reckoned that we would need a minimum of 140 people to take part but although the cycle is being organised at very short notice, the response has been great. Everyone wants to do what they can to help.
“Although the primary objective of the Cycle for Haiti is to raise as much money as possible for Oxfam International, we are also using the event to get across the message that exercise can be good fun and is something that everyone can do, no matter how fit – or even unfit – they think they are.”