Rickshaw Challenge taking place in Sunderland
Image Credit: Sunderland City Council
BBC Children in Need funds the Rickshaw Challenge
BBC’s Children in Need Rickshaw Challenge will take place in Sunderland on Monday 17th October at approximately 8.30 am. People are being urged to cheer the five inspirational young people chosen to take part in the relay-style ride over five days.
Sunderland teenager 16-year-old Alexender Walker is one of the five chosen to take part and BBC Children have supported him and the others in Need funded projects. He was diagnosed with autism when he was two and will be setting off from his beloved Sunderland AFC on the first leg of the challenge alongside Matt Baker on Monday morning.
Alexander said: “I’m so excited to be a part of this year’s Rickshaw Relay team, and to be starting at Sunderland AFC is like a dream come true. I can’t wait to head out on the road alongside Matt Baker and see all of the challenge’s supporters from the northeast coming out on the road”.
Councillor Graeme Miller, the Leader of Sunderland City Council, said: “ We’re thrilled that BBC Children in Need have chosen to start this year’s Rickshaw Challenge in Sunderland and both proud and delighted that Alexander has been chosen to ride the first leg”.
Each rider will take a section of the journey, travelling through their hometowns and visiting places across the UK which hold a particular significance for them along the way and for Alexander that means dropping in on some schools and charities that have helped him.
The Rickshaw Relay will take place between Monday 17 and Friday 21 October. This year, in a first for the challenge, BBC Breakfast will be live with Matt Baker MBE and the team every morning from 6:00 am where the public will be able to follow their journey.
Monday 17th October stops:
These are the places and the approximate times where you can cheer on Matt and Alexander and the Rickshaw Challenge:
- Sunderland AFC – Start 8:30
- Grace House – 8:40
- Northern Saints Primary School -9:03
- Hylton Castle – 9:13
- Castletown Primary School -9:20
- Barbara Priestman Academy -10:20
- Southmoor Academy Secondary School -11:15
- Hill View Junior School -11:15
- Easingston C of E Primary School – 12:45
- Sherburn Primary School – 14:20
- Palace Green, Durham – Finish 15:00
Moreover, for those who cannot make it, the challenge will be broadcast in a documentary, The Rickshaw Relay Rides again, on BBC One on Tuesday 15 November.
