Pedalling with purpose: UEA student’s fundraising cycle from Italy to England
By: Communications
A student at the University of East Anglia (UEA) has completed a charity cycling trip from his hometown in Italy to his grandparent's house in Suffolk, to raise money for an Italian Cancer Research organisation.
Claudio Barchiesi, who is heading into his second year of studies as an Economics student at UEA, embarked on his 1,500km trip from his hometown near Lake Como in Italy, with the intention to raise one euro for every kilometre travelled.
Having now raised more than €4,500 (over £3,800) for his chosen charitable trust, AIRC, the Italian Foundation for Cancer Research, Claudio has more than achieved on his cycle challenge, raising in excess of three euros for every kilometre he has travelled.
His trip through eight countries saw him travel across the Swiss Alps, up the Rhine into France, through Germany, Luxembourg, and Belgium, to finally finish in England after just 15 days of cycling. Having chosen this route to allow him to experience many different languages and cultures, Claudio also met lots of new people who were able to host him and aid him on his journey.
Reflecting on his journey across Europe, Claudio said: "This trip was definitely a challenge, and I will admit I got to the end of every day pretty much exhausted, but meeting lovely new people and seeing awesome places on this journey has been so exciting. Those are the things that motivated me to get back on my saddle early every day!
"Most of all though, what pushed me to carry on was the enormous amount of support that I received every day: from the simple good luck messages to the donations. It's unbelievable how many people have contributed."
Claudio's fundraiser donations will go towards supporting AIRC, a trust committed to fostering cancer research in Italy, by raising funds, giving out grants for cancer research, and keeping the public up to date on the latest news in this field.
Claudio said: "I have decided to give the donations to AIRC because, even if little, I want to give a small hand in the research for a cure for cancer. Unfortunately, everyone has either been touched or knows someone who has had this disease and therefore I wanted to donate to an organisation that could help many people.
"My initial objective of €1 per km has been way more than doubled and I am currently over €4,500. If someone would have told me this just a few weeks ago, I would have never believed them. An enormous thank you to everyone who has helped. Now, I am looking forward to getting back to university and starting my second year at UEA!"
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