1,309 school children came together at Marlborough College on Sunday 21 May to take part in the Knight Frank Schools Triathlon, the UK’s largest fundraising event for children.
Hattie Woodhouse at the Restless Development merchandise and offline donation stall (photo: Restless Development)
In teams of four, the young participants swam, cycled and ran over 2,599km combined, the distance from Swindon to Gibraltar and have so far have raised over £121,806k.
Organisers say it is a truly inspiring story of local children supporting young people around the world.
The event is a national series organised by global youth charity, Restless Development.
This year, more than 7,500 pupils took part to raise over £950k - which will support more than 80 charities.
A spokesperson from Restless Development said: "Thanks to event sponsor, Knight Frank the much needed funds raised will go directly to charity."
Marlborough College has hosted the event since 2017. Organisers of the triathalon added that they feel the event was a truly community-centred day, with local businesses and over 2,000 attendees coming together.
Volunteers and 93 Marlborough pupils gave up their Sunday to ensure the event ran smoothly. Hattie Woodhouse - who has taken part in the triathlons in the past - volunteered on the day and handed out T-shirts and hoodies to teams.
She said: “My journey with Restless Development first started when I did my first Schools Triathlon when I was 7 and since then I have got more involved with restless and the work they do outside of the triathlons.
"Last year I was part of a small group of people called the Restless development young leadership council who worked to try and make the world a better place for the young to grow up in a more sustainable world. I have also grown a love for triathlons on the back of the ones I did for restless dreaming of big things in the future with the para GB team.
"This charity has done so much more than just getting me involved in the triathlons. I have grown so much from being involved in the charity and I really hope others will be inspired to get involved too and help this amazing organisation.
"I decided to volunteer this year as I felt I owed something back to Restless Development for what they have done for me after doing the triathlons with them but also to be involved again in such a great event and support those taking part this year!
"My favourite part of this event was supporting everyone who took part and seeing how pleased they were and knowing what help they will give to young people all around the world from taking part in such a fun day.
"Restless Development is all about the empowerment of young people and if those young people are more fortunate can help, then it will encourage change and make a huge difference."
Lots of inspiring stories were said to have come out of the day, including the story of team Daring Dragons from Caldicott School.
The team members had the following to say:
Alexander Whyatt said: “I found out about the Knight Frank Schools Triathlon through an assembly at my school. I decided to sign up because I thought it would be very fun to do a triathlon and raise money for charity. My favourite part was the swimming.
“You should definitely sign up next year because you get tons of free stuff like sweets and there are lots of fun things to do on the day.”
Wenty Beaumont added: “I decided to sign up because I really like running and active events. I found the day very fun. My favourite part was going past the finish line because my friend gave me a piggyback and we did fun poses.
“It’s important to raise money for charity because the world becomes a better place. I fundraised for Restless Development because young people can change the world.”
Freddie Doyle commented: “I really wanted to sign up with my friends because I really like cycling, swimming and running. The day was great and I’d do it again!
“Loads of my family friends and family members donated. I have family in Germany who helped too!”
Nicolas Carew Pole said: “The event was very fun because I played with my friends and I did three very long and hard challenges. The bike ride was my favourite because there were lots of people cheering me on the side.
“We asked family and friends if they could donate. Lots of people supported us and we got lots of money. It’s important to fundraise because there are people who need it more than we do.”
Daring Dragons together raised £2,207 for Restless Development and other charities, and were top fundraisers at Sunday’s event at Marlborough College.
Those interested can email the Schools Triathlon team to be involved in the events next year [email protected] with the subject line ‘Volunteer’ or ‘Sponsorship’.
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