NEARLY 700 cyclists took part in the St David’s Hospice Care Tour De Gwent to help raise £50,000 for the charity, writes Alice Rose and Iwan Gabe Davies.
The successful fundraising event, now in its fourth year, has become a popular one, and offers six routes of varying lengths and difficulty, taking in much of Gwent.
The toughest challenge was won by rising cycling star Zach Bridges, 17, a pupil at Newport’s Rougemont School.
He led the pack to win the 93-mile platinum route for hardcore riders, taking in climbs with a total height of 7,352 feet.
The five other courses were the 78-mile gold route, 52-mile silver route, 35-mile bronze route, 20-mile midi route and three-mile kids’ route.
Franca Nigro, events/community fundraising coordinator for St David’s Hospice Care, said: “The majority of riders took on the platinum, gold and silver routes. We had elite cyclists like Zach.
“There was ex-rugby player Alix Popham and a few other serious cyclists.”
For more information on the Tour de Gwent, visit http://tourdegwent.org/