25th October, 2011
99 cyclists kicked off a tour on a 360 kilometre long track at Kibwezi, on Sunday afternoon. The participants who comprise of both professional and non professional bikers from corporate organisations in the Netherlands and the general public are here to raise funds as well as to tour Kenya. The physical and mental challenge event is dubbed 'Kenya Classic Tour.'
The 8 day event will cover a 360 kilometre long track from Nairobi through Kibwezi, Tsavo West National Park, Loiotokitok, Meerushi, Mashuru, Kajiado and back to Nairobi. (They will use buses for some of the stretches especially in the national parks).
Speaking during the flagging off event at Kibwezi, AMREF in Kenya’s Country Director, Dr Lennie Bazira Kyomuhangi, said, “We are very impressed by the turnout. The Dutch government has supported a lot of AMREF projects over the years. We are excited that we continue to work together especially on maternal and child health issues, which are a major problem in Kenya.”
Participants have raised 600,000 Euros in total in sponsorship funds and have paid for their own travel expenses. This event is expected to raise funds for and awareness of AMREF’s activities, the people and the landscape of Kenya. Along the way, they will cycle in the ‘shadow’ of Mt Kilimanjaro and will call on AMREF’s projects where they will interact with the local communities making the event a memorable one. The proceeds from the event will go towards AMREF’s maternal and child health programme.
“What makes the Kenya Classic so special is that the cyclists will be able to take a look behind the scenes of AMREF’s activities. In this way they can see for themselves how their sponsors’ funds are spent.” Dr Teguest Guerma, AMREF’s Director General said, in a statement.
Thanking the participants for turning up for the worthy cause, Deputy Head of Mission at the Netherlands Embassy in Kenya, Hans Docter, reiterated his country’s commitment in supporting health care causes in Kenya.
“AMREF in the Netherlands is most active in raising funds for various projects in Kenya. We are going to continue funding maternal health projects in order to bring down maternal and child deaths in Kenya,” said the dignitary.
“The bikers are going to ride in the hottest, dustiest, roughest, but most beautiful terrain in Kenya. We hope they will all make it to the finish line on Friday,” he added.
The cycling event is the first of its kind, organised by the Dutch people in Kenya and organisers are upbeat that it will be an annual calendar event.
“We hope to do it again, if everything goes according to plan. Next year we would like to involve more cyclists and not just those from the Netherlands. It is going to be a lot of fun, for a good cause,” says Gijs Bruinsma, the Kenya Classic Tour co-ordinator and event manager for Emolite, Netherlands.
“AMREF strives to create better health for vulnerable groups in Africa. Healthy people have more opportunities to earn a living and to escape from poverty. We have confidence in the Kenya Classic. Not only because this event will result in financial contributions to our work, but also because this group of cyclists will be able to experience firsthand what our African projects mean for the African communities. The Kenya Classic offers us an extraordinary opportunity to present our work and make it even more transparent,” said Jacqueline Lampe, Executive Director of AMREF in the Netherlands and also one of the cyclists in the Kenya Classic Tour.
Following the cyclists live
The cyclist will be small groups,' each with a minimum of two cyclists as they bike across Kenya, along small villages and the vast southern Kenya plains. The cyclists will be followed live by means of GPS trackers on www.kenyaclassic.com, allowing the home front to keep a close watch of their location. This website will also offer a daily journal and video blog,” says Gijs.
Finish
The participants will reach the finish point at the Kajiado ACK guest house late afternoon and will be officially welcomed in Nairobi at AMREF headquarters on Saturday, October 29 by AMREF’s Director General and other local and international dignitaries. On Sunday, October 30, the participants will leave Nairobi for Schiphol airport in Amsterdam, where their family and friends will be awaiting them. At this time, AMREF in the Netherlands’ Executive Director, Jacqueline Lampe, will receive the cheque with the event’s total proceeds.
