Olympians Watch On as City Slickers Go Head to Head in Oar-some Event for the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability

6 May 2011
On Thursday 23 June 2011, the top floor of City Hall will be filled with GB Olympian rowers, sports players and other celebrity spectators watching city teams compete in the fundraising challenge, “Row Hard for Neuro-disability”, sponsored by Stanford Resourcing.
 
40 teams from the City’s biggest names will battle it out on rowing machines, pushing for the fastest time in a 2000m relay, each vying for the top spot as they are cheered on by GB Rowing Olympians – who will of course show competitors and spectators how it is done, before the teams take their turn to claim the top spot.
 
Now in its second year, “Row Hard”, is raising vital funds for the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability. This year the fundraising target is £25,000, and money raised will be used to help pay for assistive technology, which gives patients and residents the crucial gift of communication, often lost after a serious trauma to the brain. This may include, for example, specialist eyegaze technology which allows those who cannot move the ability to speak through a computer simply by using their eyes.
 
Attending the event is Louisa Reeve, who came sixth in the Women’s Pairs in Beijing and fourth in the Women’s Eight at last year’s World Championships; she says:
 
 “Last year's event was a huge success and loads of fun.  This year is set to be bigger and better - a perfect opportunity for a fun evening combined with fundraising for a very worthwhile charity.”
 
Louisa will be joined by other members of the GB Olympic Rowing team, including Debbie Flood, Hester Goodsell, Charles Cousins, Tash Page, Cam Nicholl and Adam Freeman-Pask, to name a few. To add extra pressure to the city teams, other spectators will include Former English and Wasps RFU player Phil Greening as well as a number of surprise guests.
 
This year, Stanford Resourcing is kindly sponsoring the event, Mark Gibbard-Jones, Managing Director says:
 
“We are proud to sponsor the 2011 Row Hard event that will doubtless prove to build upon the success of last year and become a permanent fixture in the City sporting calendar!”
 
If you fancy a challenge and would like to register a team, visit www.rhnrowhard.org.uk  it is just £100 for a team of four (including food and drink). Alternatively, if you prefer to cheer with the celebrities, the cost is just £20 per person and includes food and an alcoholic drink – please call Anna Wall-Budden on 020 8780 4565 to reserve your place!
 

Notes to editors

For further media information, please call the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability Press Office on 020 8785 7844

Row Hard in a nutshell

• Teams of four row 2000m, that’s 500m each
• Costs £100 to register which includes food and alcohol for team members
• Suggested fundraising target is £225 per person or £900 per team
• The event will start at 18.00
• For registration and further details, visit www.rhnrowhard.co.uk

 
The Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability
The Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability is a national medical charity helping people who are affected by brain injury.  Some have been in car accidents, been mugged or might simply have fallen down the stairs. Others have had a stroke, a heart attack, or have an illness affecting their brain such as multiple sclerosis or Huntington’s disease.

The RHN offers an extensive range of rehabilitation and long-term care services, including specialist therapies and state of the art technology - giving the people we care for the best possible quality of life, whatever their level of ability. The charity must raise over £2m each year so that it can provide the wide range of therapies it currently offers patients, these include Music Therapy, Hydrotherapy, Art sessions and Assistive technology www.rhn.org.uk