Press Release

Pedal to Paris for the Legion!

This morning 270 cyclists set off from the Greenwich Maritime Museum to cycle the 440km from London to Paris to help raise money for The Royal British Legion’s welfare work with serving and ex-service men and women and their dependants.  

This year marks the tenth anniversary of ‘Pedal to Paris’ - the Legion’s flagship charity bike ride – and, for the first year ever, 30 participants will be taking on the challenge of cycling to Paris and back – a staggering distance of 880km.

On the first day cyclists will travel from Greenwich through Kent, via the Poppy Appeal Headquarters in Aylesford and then on down to Dover.  The Greenwich and Woolwich police cycle teams will accompany the riders for the first leg of the journey together with the Kent Police Motorcycle Section who will provide an escort all the way to Dover.

The four-day ride will take cyclists through some of the most beautiful and varied landscapes of Northern France.  From Calais, riders travel through the unspoilt Pas de Calais region to the charming town of Abbeville; then on through the picturesque landscapes of the Somme and Oise regions of Picardy to the heart of Paris.   

This is the only charity ride of its kind where the police stop the traffic to allow the team of cyclists to ride en masse up to the Arc de Triomphe.  Here a brief but poignant ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier marks the end of the ride.

Russell Thompson, Director of Fundraising and Marketing at The Royal British Legion said, ‘We are delighted that so many cyclists have chosen to support the Legion by taking part in our tenth ‘Pedal to Paris’.  Over the last 10 years our bike rides have raised over £2.5 million for the charity’s vital welfare work and we are hoping that this year cyclists will raise a record £250,000.’

More than 11 million serving and ex-Service peopleand their dependents are eligible for the Legion’s support which covers a range of services including grant-making to those in

need, pensions and benefits advice, counselling and job retraining, home and hospital visits as well as the provision of full nursing care.

For more information about the Legion’s annual bike rides please visit www.poppybike.org.