Geoff Thomas to ride Tour de France stage for Cure Leukaemia

Littleborough-born Geoff Thomas and a team of amateur cyclists will ride stage 9 of the Tour de France, one day ahead of the professionals on Saturday 4 July, marking 17 years since the former footballer was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia.

To mark ‘Geoff Thomas Day’, Geoff is urging the blood cancer community, football community and general public to get involved and organise their own fundraising activities to support him and the team in raising £1m for the charity that saved his life, Cure Leukaemia.

The funds raised will be invested directly into the national Trials Acceleration Programme (TAP) network allowing blood cancer patients, from an increased catchment area of over 20 million people, access to potentially life-saving treatments through clinical trials.

Geoff played for Rochdale in the early 80s, went on to play for England and appeared in an FA Cup Final in 1990 with Crystal Palace. He cycled the entire Tour De France route to raise money for Leukaemia Research in 2005 in just 21 days, the same time schedule as the professional bike riders.

He received the Helen Rollason award at the 2005 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards in recognition of this feat and for showing outstanding courage in adversity.

• www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/10642/geoff-thomas-awarded-at-sports-personality-ceremony

Similar to the leader of the Tour de France, Geoff will lead the GT15 team wearing a special yellow jersey to symbolise his representation of blood cancer patients across the world.

Geoff said: “It is humbling as ever that so many people are getting behind what we are doing this year, including my former team-mate Gary [Lineker].

“Each cyclist has their own £30,000 fundraising target to hit, to help us towards our overall aim of reaching £1million, but we don’t want to just hit the target we want to beat and surpass it to ensure more and more funds are raised to help patients.

“We are urging the general public to join us and help beat this target by doing their own fundraising event. Whether it’s a cycle ride or similar sporting challenge, a car wash, bake sale, walk, barbecue, any sort of event – it would be fantastic to create a real buzz around that day with fundraising and publicity. Any support of this kind would also be a huge boost to our team out in France as we approach the halfway point of the Tour.

 

 

“It means anyone can get involved and play their part, however big or small, as it all makes a difference in terms of the overall total which will save the lives of leukaemia patients, just as mine was saved all those years ago.”

The launch of ‘Geoff Thomas Day’ has been welcomed by England footballing legend Gary Lineker, whose son George was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 1992.

The BBC Match of the Day presenter said: “It is extraordinary what Geoff has achieved since going into remission 15 years ago. This will be his seventh Grand Tour and his final Tour de France, and I really hope he and his team go beyond their £1m target for Cure Leukaemia. I think ‘Geoff Thomas Day’ is a great idea and I would urge football fans and the wider public to get involved to support Geoff and his team this year.

“It is widely known that my son George was diagnosed with blood cancer as a baby and I am forever grateful for the care he received nearly 30 years ago. George is alive and well and there have been phenomenal advances made in the treatment of blood cancer since then but there is still much more to be done.

“That is why I am happy to support Geoff, Cure Leukaemia and the TAP network to ensure more and more people survive this disease and progress continues towards eradicating blood cancer as soon as possible.”

For more information about the ‘Geoff Thomas Day’ campaign, please visit:

• gt15.co.uk/gtday/