Day of Champions : a unique event in the world of sport
Thursday June 29th 2006 - Donington Park
www.riders.org
MotoGP and Riders for Health form a partnership that saves
and transforms lives throughout Africa.
Two or three times a year, the MotoGP paddock is disrupted
by Day of Champions, Dia de los Campeones or some other event
to raise money for Riders. Teams, riders and organisers give
up valuable time from the hectic schedules for a vital cause.
Riders for Health was founded back in 1989 by a group of
people from the Grand Prix paddock, including Randy Mamola,
Kenny Roberts, Andrea Coleman and Barry Coleman. It is now
the charity officially supported by Dorna, the FIM, a number
of teams ranging from Ducati to Team KR, and circuits like
Donington Park, Sachsenring, Catalunya and Valencia.
The first Day of Champions took place in 1991 with Wayne
Rainey and Eddie Lawson, and each year it gets bigger and
better.
Only the motorcycle community could do the work of Riders
for Health. And because the world is now beginning to understand
just how motorcycles save lives in Africa, it shows motorcycling
and motorcyclists in the best possible light. It is extremely
valuable public relations, and to make this even more useful,
Riders is a registered charity in the UK, Spain, Italy, Germany,
the Netherlands and the USA. It truly reflects the international
nature and international goodwill of motorcyclists everywhere.
The money raised at events like Day of Champions is used
to train Riders' African staff - as well as health workers
and aid workers from other NGOs - to ride safely, maintain
their vehicles and manage their fleets so that health services
can be delivered in even the most difficult of conditions.
A health worker with one motorcycle can look after up to
20,000 people.
A set of MotoGP rider's leathers sold at auction can sponsor
a community health nurse for a year ... or buy them a motorcycle.
Just $200 will provide protective clothing, gloves, boots
and a helmet for a nurse.
A MotoGP racer's helmet can fetch enough money at auction
to take care of the health of 300 African children for a whole
year.
For every $6,500 raised at a Riders for Health event, we can
supply an Uhuru - a community development vehicle that helps
people to reach their nearest clinic in an emergency. When
it is not being used as an ambulance, the Uhuru can drive
a water pump using its rear wheel.
packed as ever!
Meet the stars at the ride-in! - We now have confirmation
that Suzuki MotoGP stars John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen
will join Niall Mackenzie at the Victoria Pub in Coalville
to help get the 2006 ride-in underway. They will also be interviewed
on stage in the pub exclusively for the ride-in crowd.
First auction lots confirmed - The climax of the day will
once again be the star-studded auction, where all the top
riders auction their unique items of memorabilia. The fantastic
lots already confirmed include:
Leathers from Marco Melandri, Shinya Nakano, Loris Capirossi,
Sete Gibernau, Makoto Tamada and James Ellison
A helmet from John Hopkins
Boots and gloves from Chris Vermeulen
Leathers, boots and a helmet from Colin Edwards
An appearance by Valentino Rossi will most likely be on the
cards during Thursday's stage show
Get on track with sidecar champions! - Following the success
of last year's sidecar rides (one participant described it
as "better than sex"!), you will once again be able
to whizz round the track as a sidecar passenger. Taking you
round at top speed will be:
Tim Reeves - World Champion
Stuart Muldoon - Winner of a world round
Steve Norbury - 2nd and 3rd places at Isle of Man TT 2005
Roy Hanks - Finished 3rd at TT
Dan Morrisey - Up-and-coming world class rider
Mark Halliday - Top F2 rider
Richard Holdsworth - Top F2 rider
Roger Stockton - Top F2 rider
Tickets cost £25 for two laps (£30 for a ride
with Tim Reeves), and all participants must be fully equipped
with helmet and leathers)
For a timetable of events visit www.riders.org website.
|
