Rugby Tour De France - a Charity Cycle by Darragh McElligott for Médecins Sans Frontières ("MSF")
Photo, top left of page - Supporting MSF and the Rugby Tour de France: senior Ireland rugby internationals Rob Kearney (far left), Bernard Jackman (middle right) and Jamie Heaslip (far right) with Darragh McElligott (middle left, and definitely not an international rugby player).
What is the Rugby Tour de France?
The Rugby Tour de France is a three-week charity solo cycle by me, Darragh McElligott, during the Rugby World Cup in France in September 2007, and in aid of Médecins Sans Frontieres (“MSF”). MSF is one of the world’s leading humanitarian aid organisations and has recently opened an office in Dublin.
Who am I?
A former failed club rugby player with Clontarf Rugby Club and Trinity College in Dublin (yes, I know you’ve never heard of me), seasoned observers have commented that I could have had a decent career in rugby if only I’d been a much, much better player. I did play for seven seasons in the Clontarf team in the First Division of the All-Ireland League, but the club finally saw sense and gently eased me into retirement.
And so, last year, at the tender age of 31, I took up cycling instead. The motive for this change of sporting pursuit was of course the vain and clearly misguided hope that I might somehow still achieve my childhood dream of sporting immortality. Alas, as it turns out, I’m not much good at the cycling either…
On a positive note, the combination of the two sports has given birth to the Rugby Tour de France, a charity cycle passing through seven French cities that are hosting World Cup matches.
What is Médecins Sans Frontieres (“MSF”)?
MSF is one of the world’s leading organisations for emergency medical aid, and has recently opened an office in Dublin. In over 70 countries worldwide, MSF provides relief to the victims of war, natural disasters, and epidemics irrespective of race, religion, or political affiliation. An entirely independent organisation, MSF won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999 in recognition of its contribution to humanitarian causes. For more detailed information on MSF, please click on the “About MSF” icon on the main menu, or visit www.msf.ie.
Tell us more about the cycle…
Naturally, I’m not averse to sampling French cuisine or to spending three weeks enjoying the fine weather of a French summer, but I stress that this cycle is not a holiday, nor is that its aim. The cycle will cover 1,500km in 16 days of cycling, with just four rest days out of 20, and an average distance of just under 100 kilometres per day.
Starting off in Nantes on the west coast on 1 September, the route will bring me south to Bordeaux, and then on to the legendary rugby heartland of Toulouse. I then reach the southern seaside city of Montpellier, and follow the coastline to Marseille, before turning north towards Saint Etienne, and finishing in the world heritage city of Lyon on 20 September.
What are the aims of this charity cycle?
The aims are twofold and simple – to raise much-needed funds for MSF, and to increase public awareness in Ireland of what MSF is and the work it does. To achieve the latter, please encourage as many of your relatives, friends and colleagues as possible to visit both this website and www.msf.ie.
Why donate to this event and to MSF?
It’s an old cliché, but no pain, no gain - so if this cycle hurts, then maybe you’ll be convinced to part with some of your hard-earned cash for a worthy cause. Trust me, it’s going to hurt to lug my bike (and the 105-plus kilos sitting on top of it) around half of France. Half of France is still pretty vast, I might add, it being the largest country in Western Europe, and it’s got mountains, lots of them, and they’re very very big! Did I also mention that my exceedingly pale complexion is very prone to sunburn and this cycle is taking place in the searing heat of a southern French summer?
Self-deprecation aside, here is the serious part.
MSF is a completely independent humanitarian organisation. In order to carry out the truly inspiring work that it does, MSF relies almost entirely on private donations from individuals and organisations. The medical aid provided by MSF saves thousands upon thousands of lives every year and brings hope where previously none existed. Thousands upon thousands of innocent people would die every year without MSF. Your money can literally save lives, by funding existing aid programmes and/or new MSF projects.
Why give to MSF rather than other worthy charities, of which there are many? We’ve all heard the old adage that to teach a man to fish is better than just giving him a fish. Well sometimes, a man is simply too ill to fish, and you cannot teach him until he is better. Sometimes, you need to just give a man a fish, and help him get better.
If you are interested in donating to this cause, please click on the “Donations” icon in the main menu, and thank you for visiting this site.
P.S. Sincere thanks to Alan Reddan and Liam Cantwell of Silverarm Solutions for creating this website. See www.silverarm.ie.
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