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June 30, 2023
From Jun 28 to 29, we were thrilled to bring members of the sports industry together at our offices in Holborn, Central London for the Sport Together Fund 24-Hour Challenge to raise funds and awareness in support of refugees and displaced people around the world. Human endurance and determination were put to the test as teams cycled for an ambitious goal — to virtually cover the distance between London, England and Kyiv, Ukraine — in recognition of the Russian invasion of Ukraine which has displaced an estimated 14 million people since the war began.
In 30-minute stints, riders rode on RE:GEN Bikes – with additional virtual contributions coming in via the Square Mile Club app – to cover an astounding 1,330 miles within 24 hours! A huge congratulations to Sportradar, M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment, CSM Sport & Entertainment, Right Formula, Cake, Ear to the Ground, Two Circles, Thomas Lyte and Fifty Digital for contributing to the cause – and a special thank you to Smart Group Ltd. and Energym, as well as to our parent company Benchmark and sister companies thinkBeyond, Trybworld, NSE and the Sport Industry Group for successfully conquering the distance! Cake topped the agency leaderboard with a contribution of 46.7 miles, followed by Two Circles (46.7 miles) and Sportradar (46.3 miles). Benchmark led overall with 46.9 miles.
We were honored to welcome Fund Expert Advisor, Lam Joar, who shared a bit about his own refugee experience with Beyond Sport Founder and Board Chair, Nick Keller. “I was lucky to be out of Sudan during unrest and conflict – so many people lost their lives. I grew up in a refugee camp and in short, I’d say that sport really changed my life. Sports brought me to where I am today. Any little thing that you do to contribute to providing opportunities and sports opportunities in refugee camps means so much for refugee kids.”
Lam and Nick joined Fund Grantee Partner, Bloomsbury Football Foundation in kicking off the challenge and setting an incredible pace and momentum for the rest. The Sport Together Fund 24-Hour Challenge was not only a competition, but a way for the sport sector to continue to highlight one of the biggest humanitarian crises of our time. As one of our participants said:
“I had a bit of personal motivation for wanting to be involved. My wife grew up in Nova Kakhovka [in Ukraine], where the dam fell a couple of weeks ago. Her family has been scattered across Ukraine over the past year and many of her friends across Europe. It’s been a tough year for her – but nothing like they’ve had it and have it. So getting a chance to puff my way through 30 mins to raise a little more money and awareness, it helps and it matters – even if it’s just knowing the innocents out there haven’t been forgotten and there’s still things we can do.”
By the end of 2022, 108.4 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced as a result of persecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations and natural disasters. Beyond Sport launched the Sport Together Fund to provide grants and capacity-building support to non-profit organizations, sports clubs and collectives who are assisting communities facing conflict, displacement, human rights violations and climate change disasters. The Fund also supports the transit and host communities where people are rebuilding their lives. Please consider making a donation towards our efforts.
You can also learn more about our inaugural grantee-partners here. With an initial focus on fostering “Leadership Together,” the seven recipients are promoting well-being, inclusivity and hope through sports-based leadership training opportunities for refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable communities.
Thank you again to all our riders and see below for some videos and photos from across the day and night!
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