This summer 32 Hertfordians will take part in a cycle ride from the ‘Bridge of Sighs’ in Oxford to the Bridge of Sighs in Venice to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the iconic bridge.
The team, which will be headed by Principal Will Hutton, will consist of fellows, students and alumni. Notable alumni taking part in the journey include television news presenter, Krishnan Guru-Murthy, and UK ambassador to Lebanon, Tom Fletcher. The team aim to raise £250,000 for bursaries, scholarships and outreach.
The journey is expected to take eleven days. Approximately 100 Hertfordians will take part in the first phase, with 32 completing the entire journey to Venice.
Will Hutton said, “As Principal of Hertford, I have accepted the daunting challenge of cycling 1,100km in 11 days – and as I can already tell from the training, it will be no easy task! It’s an incredible adventure, and for a great cause. Hertford has a long tradition of promoting access and helping disadvantaged young people to thrive at university – and it is increasingly critical that we have the money to continue this support”.
Miriam Chapman, a first year Hertfordian who will be cycling the first phase of the journey told Cherwell, “I am taking part in the bridge to bridge bike ride, aside from being a keen fresher, because Hertford’s Access scheme is generally awesome. Not only does it really benefit individuals – myself included – but it benefits the college as a whole. Hertford’s merit over means ethos is what makes is such a down to earth and friendly college. Plan of attack for 1st year cyclists is to stick to the training plan better than we do our revision timetables and just cycle everywhere!”
She added, “It’s great that so many Hertford alumni are great involved. Famous or not, their stories about their time are Hertford and how it helped them in later life is pretty inspirational. It’s also really excellent that they can pull in a variety of sponsors, not just students friends and family!”
Anna Baskerville, Senior Development Officer at Hertford College, told Cherwell, “At Hertford, we believe that money should not be a barrier to an Oxford education – so we have organised this bike ride to coincide with our celebrations of the iconic Hertford bridge being 100 years old in order to raise much-needed funds”.
She continued, “All funds raised will be going towards student support: bursaries, scholarships and outreach. The bike ride from Oxford to Venice is an amazing opportunity to bring together alumni, fellows, students, staff and friends for an event that is not only challenging but for a great cause that will benefit future generations of Hertford students”.
