The annual Round the Island Race is the third largest participation sporting event in the UK and this year the title sponsors, JPMorgan Asset Management, are encouraging all those taking part to make their race count and race for charity.
A new website has been set up to ensure giving is easy, with the added incentive, for those who register to race for charity, of winning a box for a day at Lord’s cricket ground for 16 people.
http://public.jpmorgan.com/sites/roundtheisland/index.htm
Charity fundraising is not new to the Island Sailing Club’s annual race round the Isle of Wight and over the years many worthy causes have benefited from this classic sporting event. In this, the 75th anniversary year of the Round the Island Race, JPMorgan Asset Management are making charity donations and collection easy through a brand new website. Those boats that register on the site as fundraisers will automatically be entered into a free prize draw to win a hospitality box at Lord’s - the home of cricket - for 16 people.
Campbell Fleming, Managing Director and Head of UK, JPMorgan Asset Management said: “As sponsors of this great event, we love the fact that the 13,000 competitors who compete in the annual race encompass everything from the young, old, families, professional sailors, first timers and Olympic gold medallists. This year will even see a couple doing the race for their honeymoon. We hope in time the race will become sailing’s equivalent of the Flora London Marathon.”
The website includes details of all the official race charities, how to set up a personal charity web page plus helpful fundraising tips, ideas, notes on Gift Aid and a fundraising pack.
Peter Dickson, Commodore of the Island Sailing Club, commented: “I’m sure many more competitors, as well as supporting my ‘Commodore’s Charities’, will enjoy fundraising this year and any recognised charity can be chosen. In the past these have ranged from a group of fathers collecting for their local hospice to a crew of MPs, many of whom had never sailed before, intent on doing their best to help the British Paralympic team. As part of the race management team, I won’t have the opportunity to race this year but my boat will certainly be competing in support of Prostate Research UK.”
Flavia Bateson http://www.roundtheisland.org.uk/