Organisers of the Flight Centre Schools Triathlon, which has finished after a grand final event at Marlborough College, are hailing this year’s event as the most successful yet.
3,330 children aged 7-13 participated in the series, which took place over three weekends in April and May, and was attended by 15,000 spectators.
The young people were drawn from nearly 70 schools, and bring the aggregate number of competitors in the event’s four-year history to 9,000.
£400,000 was raised this year for the both organising charity, Restless Development, and local school charities, meaning that the total collected over four years has reached the £1m mark.
Jim Sewell, the event founder, said: “We are so proud of all the children to have swum, run and cycled their way to raising £1 million. To be the UK’s largest sporting fundraiser just for children within four years of launching is absolutely amazing.”
“Thanks to the money raised we have helped young people in developing countries help themselves by setting up businesses and lifting themselves, and their families, out of poverty,” said Perry Maddox, CEO of Restless Development.
“We have helped them become leaders in their own communities and spearhead the change they want to see in the world when it comes HIV/AIDS, women’s rights or climate change,” he added.
“In the four years since the triathlons started we’ve trained and supported over 15,000 young leaders around the world and they have reached over 4.5 million people.”
