London to Paris cycle ride in memory of George begins

Nicole Zographou from Bristol and a team of friends are setting off on an enormous fundraising cycle challenge today [15 August 2018] in memory of Nicole’s brother George, to mark one year since George so tragically died.

They are cycling from London to Paris - a distance of 308 miles from capital to capital. They hope to arrive, albeit very sore, in Paris around 5pm on Saturday 18 August.

To sponsor the team or follow their journey live on a GPS tracker, click here.

The team members are Nicole, Hakeem Junior, Rosie Banting, Rachel Fearon, Louie Hunkin, Morgan White and Nathan Hall and they are fundraising for Meningitis Research Foundation.

Nicole said, “George’s one year anniversary is Thursday 16th August. We switched off the machine at 13.34. Life has been cruel. My heart is hurting always but particularly this week. Grief can be an emptiness that sometimes stops all feeling...an inability to feel anything...a numbness...a dysfunctional set of emotions that don't know how to move forward...But aren’t we lucky that we have a chance to live when others aren't so lucky. This bike ride has given me some emotions back, fear at the moment but hopefully excitement is to come. Although things will never be the same I hope this ride represents a way forward with George forever in our hearts.”

The story is being covered by BBC Points West news on Wednesday 15th, Saturday 18th and Monday 20 August.

Find out more about the work Nicole and her family have been doing to put meningitis higher on the government’s agenda, here.