In 2018, the GI Cancer Institute proudly announced our inaugural L’etape team. Eight cyclists rode over 100km through the Snowy Mountains to raise awareness and funds for people with gastro-intestinal cancers.
The L’etape 2018 team was made up of AGITG board members: Andrew Barbour, Mustafa Khasraw and Nik Zeps. Guy Tancock, Tony Ryan and Robert Djundjek made up the industry partner contingent of the team, representing Servier.
The team was also privileged to ride with Richard Smith. Richard was fundraising on behalf of his eldest daughter who was diagnosed with a rare GIST after completing her HSC.
Tristan Yip (son of AGITG member Desmond Yip) set the standard for the individual fundraising for the team, raising over $10,000 alone!
THE WEEKEND:
The team stayed at the beautiful Jindabyne Holiday Park, with a team dinner on Friday night and a strict early to bed time for those taking on the Gutsy Challenge the following day.
Despite the early morning start and the momentous task ahead of them the team members were enthusiastic as they gathered at the start line.
The L’Etape course is the closest equivalent to a leg of the Tour de France you can get in Australia. For the team members the course was one of the most challenging they had ever done, but also one of the most beautiful.
On their return, the intrepid Gutsy Riders sat down to a well-deserved break, meal and lots of celebration.
Knowing they had finished the ride all while raising vital funds for GI cancer research made the pain worth it.
“My bike – I had some mechanical problems. At the end of the day I went to a bike mechanic, and he was very grumpy and he said, ‘Why do you want me to do this? You finished the race’. He started working on it and when I explained to him I’m part of a group raising money for GI cancer, he completely flipped. He said he had someone close to him who had gastric cancer, and then he did an amazing job. He didn’t charge me, and he said, ‘This is my contribution to GI cancer’.” Mustafa Khasraw, 2018 GI Cancer L’etape team member.
In 2018 the GI Cancer Institute’s inaugural L’etape team raised in excess of $30,000 for the AGITG Innovation Fund grant.
INNOVATION FUND:
As a previous recipient of this grant, Andrew Barbour knows how important it is to continue fundraising for the GI Cancer Institute.
You can click here to read about how this grant has funded vital new research into improving treatment options and outcomes for the 28,900 Australians diagnosed with a GI Cancer each year.
We need to continue our fundraising efforts so that patients and their families can benefit from the new research being funded by the grant.
ABOUT L’ETAPE:
L’etape Australia is the largest Tour de France event held outside France. The event offers amateur riders an experience as close to riding in the Tour de France you can get this side of Europe. With fully closed roads and a course equal to a mountainous stage of the Tour de France, L’etape provides a truly unique riding experience.
The GI Cancer Institute are once again looking for a team of riders to join the second Gutsy L’etape Challenge team.
The team will again be raising money for the AGITG Innovation Fund, helping to fund new research for those 28,900 Australians diagnosed with a GI Cancer each year.
Click here to complete the registration form on our website and we will be in touch with the next steps.