2016 Football To Amsterdam Challenge set to depart Oakwell Stadium on Friday!
Nine Barnsley FC supporters will be joining the fight against prostate cancer this weekend by taking on the gruelling 2016 Football to Amsterdam cycling challenge in aid of Prostate Cancer UK as the charity aims to raise half a million pounds.
Prostate Cancer UK, the Official Charity Partner of The Football League, will stage its fourth annual football fundraiser from 3-5 June 2016 – prostatecanceruk.org/amsterdam – and this year there is now not one but three Grand Departs. One group of riders will set off right here from Oakwell Stadium - the home of Barnsley FC - while two further groups will depart from a new starting point at the iconic Olympic Park’s Velodrome, and at Ipswich Town’s Portman Road.
Proudly representing Barnsley FC, lifelong Reds fans Simon Dennis, Melvin Wallace, Alan Dalby, Luke Darnbrough, John Holmes, Ben Holmes, Rob Davies, Ady Baker and Simon Jennison will be pounding the pedals from Oakwell Stadium to Amsterdam to support the leading men’s health charity against a disease that kills one man every hour.
What’s more, Men United’s Three Lions, Luther Blissett, Terry Butcher and Viv Anderson will start from London, Ipswich and Barnsley respectively a week before England take on the cream of the continent in Euro 2016.
The nine riders representing Barnsley FC will join the former England trio amid more than 350 riders from across the country in Prostate Cancer UK’s Men United team, all riding 145 miles and raising money to stop prostate cancer being a killer.
The £500,000 raised will help ‘shift the science’ and crack the three core issues of diagnosis, treatment and prevention which have been left unsolved for too long. It will also help provide support and information to those affected by the disease.
From the initial event in 2013 with a small group of 35 riders, to a total fundraising tally which will smash through the £1m mark this year thanks to a biggest ever peloton; the football-themed cycling challenge has proved a phenomenal success throughout its four years.
Football to Amsterdam is more than a ride for Reds Fan Simon Dennis, who was inspired to take on the 145 mile challenge and go the distance for Prostate Cancer UK.
Simon commented: “I was staggered to find out that prostate cancer affects 1 in 8 men in the UK, that's a rate of 10,000 deaths a year! Prostate Cancer UK carry out invaluable work so that more men survive and enjoy a better quality of life. Knowing people affected by the disease, I decided to join the fight against cancer to raise awareness and funds to support the charity. Having not cycled any significant distance for over 5 years this is a big personal challenge and my journey will be made even more challenging as I will be riding alongside a good friend who happens to be a Blades fan!!!”
Through a wide range of fundraising activities - including arranging for the Reds First Team players to wear special edition match shirts earlier in the Season against Chesterfield - our Barnsley FC cycling team has already raised an incredible £13,500 for Prostate Cancer UK and are now hoping to smash the £15,000 mark with help from fans and the local community.
Our Official Club Partners and Local Barnsley Companies Palmer Construction, CK Beckett, Bapp For Bolts and The Investment Room have got behind the team by making substantial sponsorship donations and will feature on the Barnsley FC team cycling jersey’s (please see the photo below) throughout the ride. We would like to say a huge thank you to all of these sponsors for their generous and fantastic support for a very worthy cause.
We are now calling on Barnsley supporters to get behind the team for this mammoth challenge and donate to Prostate Cancer UK via the team's fundraising page by clicking here. All proceeds raised by the team will be donated directly to the charity.
The challenge will depart Oakwell Stadium at 9am on Friday morning and supporters are welcome to come along and cheer the hundreds of cyclists off as they depart for Europe!
Good luck to all the team!
For more information about the ride, please visit www.prostatecanceruk.org/Amsterdam
The Barnsley FC Team Cycling Jersey
Simon Dennis with Prostate Cancer UK Ambassador and lifelong Barnsley supporter Sir Michael Parkinson.