This February, 32 cyclists from various parts of the United Kingdom will be taking on the challenging ride from Mecca to Medina to raise vital funds and awareness for children suffering from Congenital Heart Defects in Africa. The cyclists are aiming to raise over £100,000 for children with no access to medical care and are at serious risk from this crippling and dangerous ailment.
The cyclist from the H&KCC cycling club will be riding for three days, 6th – 8th of February and will endure some of the most challenging desert conditions, such as strong headwinds and temperatures hitting 40C. The team will cover more than 350 kilometres across the tough desert roads separating these two historic cities in the West of Saudi Arabia. This is only the second time this feat has been attempted with the UK cycling club completing the ride last year for the first time after battling the tough environment, weather and often busy roads that made the experience even tougher for the riders and support teams.
The campaign will raise vital funds for Muntada Aid’s flagship project Little Hearts which was launched in April 2012. The charity provides free life-saving heart surgeries to children with congenital heart defects from underprivileged backgrounds irrespective of gender, race or religion. To date, it has carried out 40 missions in 12 countries and performed over 2,500 cardiac interventions and surgeries saving thousands of lives. An estimated 1. 5 million children are born each year with a congenital heart defect (CHD) globally. 10% of babies born with CHD do not survive their first year of life. 1000s more die and don’t reach adulthood. In poor underdeveloped countries, the lack of specialised medical infrastructure means babies born with congenital heart defects have little or no access to necessary treatment.
Shamsul Abdin, Head of H&K Cycle Club, commented, “The Little Hearts project delivers vital operations and saves the lives of so many children around the world and the team is delighted to be able to support Muntada Aid’s missions in 2023. We aim to raise as much as possible to help the cause and ask everyone to give generously to help us hit our goal.”
Kabir Miah, Programmes Manager of Muntada Aid, added, “We are so thankful to the Hope and Knowledge Cycle Club for choosing to raise money for our Little Hearts project. We are in awe of all the riders as they take on this tough ride across the desert and so grateful to all the individuals who have generously donated to help support our vital work in so many countries.”
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