Francis and Jaco present trainer Richard Lee with the trophy

Following the race, Jaco Van Gass and Francis Atkinson, part of the Walking With The Wounded Everest 2012 Expedition summit team, were presented with a cheque donation from Betfair’s Martin Cruddace for £5,000. Every penny will go towards the re-training, re-skilling and re-education of wounded servicemen.

Francis and Jaco receive a £5,000 cheque from Betfair

Jaco and Francis commented “We are very grateful to Betfair for their generous donation to Walking With The Wounded.  It was a fantastic atmosphere at Newbury today and a pleasure to be here. We are very grateful for all the support we have received for our Everest Challenge later this year”.

Several members of the Walking With The Wounded Everest 2012 Expedition will be there, telling their stories and raising money for the charity.  And, even better… The event is completely FREE!  So if you are wondering what to do with the kids this half-term, why don’t you come down, meet the guys and watch some great racing?

The BBC have put up quite a bit of information about the Himalayas on their website recently.  Click on the link here to find out more about the region that our intrepid Everest 2012 Expedition will be visiting.

The Glenfiddich Janet Sheed Roberts Reserve sold for £44,000 at an auction in London last night and every penny from the sale goes directly to the charities supported by Walking With The Wounded.

Walking With The Wounded is a charity dedicated raising funds for the re-training and re-education of our injured servicemen and women. Glenfiddich is lead sponsor of Walking With The Wounded’s forthcoming Everest 2012 Expedition and the team of wounded servicemen embarking on this challenge attended last night’s auction to witness the bidding and final sale.

The rare 55 year old single malt Scotch whisky was created in honour of Janet Sheed Roberts, the granddaughter of William Grant – founder of the Glenfiddich distillery – who celebrated her 110^th birthday in August, making her the oldest living person in Scotland.

Edward Parker, co-founder of Walking With The Wounded, commented: “We’re delighted that Glenfiddich auctioned this rare single malt Scotch whisky on behalf of Walking With The Wounded. The live auction was thrilling to watch and we couldn’t be happier with the amount raised – it is a great boost to our wounded serviceman heading off on the Everest expedition. Every penny raised will go to re-training and re-educating wounded servicemen and women from our armed conflicts. Together, alongside companies like Glenfiddich, we can take steps for a better future.”

Last year, Walking With The Wounded inspired people from all backgrounds, by taking four wounded servicemen to the Geographic North Pole. This year, the charity have set their sights even higher: to take five wounded servicemen to the 8,848m summit of Mount Everest.

Climbing Everest is one of the world’s toughest challenges. To succeed, the climbers will have to overcome precipitous falls, hurricane force winds and treacherous snow-covered crevasses; their bodies will have to cope with chronic altitude sickness, immense fatigue and bitter cold.
In this video, voiced by British acting legend Brian Blessed, we get an intimate insight into what these remarkable men and women go through every day. We also have an exclusive look what they really have to cope with on the world’s highest mountain: talking about 300m-deep crevasses is one thing, but seeing a soldier cross one via a precarious ladder, with just one functional arm, really brings the immensity of the task home.

Walking With The Wounded. Taking Steps For A Better Future.

Glenfiddich are the title sponsors of Walking With The Wounded’s Everest 2012 Expedition, and as part of their support to the charity, they are putting one of the world’s rarest whiskies up for auction: the 55-year-old Glenfiddich Janet Sheed Roberts Reserve.  Given that the last bottle of this whisky to be auctioned raised £46,850, this will be a fantastic contribution to the cause of raising funds for the re-training, re-skilling and re-education of wounded servicemen and women.

There was even a feature in the Financial Times’ prestigious “How To Spend It’ section – you can see the whole article here.  And if you are feeling particularly indulgent, follow the links to the silent auction.

 

Today, Karl Hinett and Jaco Van Gass – part of the 2012 Walking With The Wounded Everest Summit Team – presented the recently-retired equine star Denman with a commemorative rug honouring his outstanding racing career.

Karl and Jaco were present at the stables of Paul Nicholls, trainer of Denman, ahead of this weekend’s racing highlight “Betfair Super Saturday” at Newbury Racecourse, where a race has been renamed in Denman’s honour; The Betfair Denman Chase.

Jaco Van Gass, part of the Everest Summit Team comments: “It was incredible to meet Denman today and to be able to take a little bit of Denmania back to Hedley Court for the lads that can’t get out to Newbury Races this Saturday. We’ve made him an honorary member of Walking With The Wounded, as he’s a soldier in his own right. Thanks also to Paul Nicholls for his kind words of support.”

The Walking With The Wounded Everest summit team Martin Hewitt, Jaco Van Gass, Karl Hinnett, David Wiseman and Francis Atkinson will be present at Newbury Racecourse on Betfair Super Saturday, 11 February. The second race, live on Channel 4, has been generously re-named by Betfair in recognition of the Everest 2012 Expedition and is now called the Betfair supports Walking With The Wounded Handicap Hurdle, with the trophy presentation being made by HRH Prince Harry, Patron of the Everest 2012 Expedition.

A favourite with the public and labeled by many as “The Tank” for his relentless gallop, Denman won 15 races including two Hennessy Gold Cups (2007/2009) and the Aon Chase (2008), both held at Newbury Racecourse, as well as the blue riband of Jump racing, the Cheltenham Gold Cup (2008).  In total, he won over £1 million in prize money.

As a friend of Walking With The Wounded, you can get special discounts for the races this Saturday by following the link here.