Top Kiwi athletes support Starship Foundation

MEDIA RELEASE
 

9 February 2010

Top Kiwi athletes support Starship Foundation with Trade Me Bike Wise Month auction

As part of Bike Wise Month – New Zealand’s annual celebration of two-wheeled transport – the New Zealand Transport Agency and top Kiwi athletes Hamish Carter and Alison Shanks are helping to raise money for the Starship Foundation through a Trade Me auction going live today.

Olympic champion triathlete Hamish has been a long-term supporter of the Starship Foundation, which provides additional equipment, support and services to staff, patients and families at Starship Children’s Hospital.

“The Foundation helps out more than 100,000 kids and their families from around the country each year, and I’m stoked to be doing my bit to support them”, Hamish says.  “Hopefully people will join in and have a bid on the auction. We want to raise as much money as possible.”

The Trade Me auction, which runs from February 9 until February 16, features signed jerseys from Hamish Carter, world champion track cyclist Alison Shanks, and various European professional cycle teams (see bottom for full list). You can visit the site here.

The auction has been organised as part of February’s Bike Wise Month, sponsored by the NZTA and the Ministry of Health to encourage Kiwis of all ages to give cycling a go at one of hundreds of events taking place across the country throughout February.

 “Cycling brings all ages and abilities together,” says Alison Shanks.  What other sport can a weekend warrior, a school kid, a granddad and mother ride along side professional riders, Olympic and World Champions?  Cycling can be social, competitive or for some of us a job.  But always there are plenty of sights to see and stories to be told.”

You can find out what’s happening in your region to celebrate Bike Wise Month at www.bikewise.co.nz/regions.html.
 

The jerseys being auctioned are:

-          A Quick Step jersey signed by Belgian professional road bicycle racer Tom Boonen

-          A Milram Jersey signed by all the members of this German pro cycling team

-          A Gerolsteiner cycle jersey signed by the all members of this elite German road bicycle team

-          One Avanti Pro SS Cycle Jersey signed by world champion New Zealand cyclist Alison Shanks

-          One Avanti Pro SS Cycle Jersey signed by Olympic gold medal triathlete Hamish Carter

-          One Lampre pro cycle jersey signed by the Italian Lampre cycle team

-          World Championship Quickstep cycle jersey signed by former Italian road racing cyclist Paolo Bettini

 
ends