On Sunday, April 2, thousands of cyclists converged on the river city, replacing motorists on the streets for fun and fundraising at this year’s Australian Unity Tour de Brisbane.
It’s the city’s largest closed-road cycling event, and with 50km, 80km and 110km cycles plus four free family rides, it had something for cyclists of all abilities. Some pedal to race, some pedal for enjoyment and others pedal to keep the wheels of transplant research in motion.
In 2023, the event raised more than $126,000 for transplant research and research into related conditions such as heart and lung disease and ICU care. That equates to more than 2,625 hours of research.
“The Common Good is proud to support life-saving research into organ transplant and other related conditions to help people live healthier for longer. Just last year, through the support and generosity of the public, a heart was transported a record-breaking distance from Australia’s east coast to the west coast. This life-saving feat wouldn’t have been possible without the support of people like the Australian Unity Tour de Brisbane riders,” said Chloe Nguyen, The Common Good’s General Manager of Marketing and Memberships.
“This support allows us to keep the momentum going. We want to fund even more research that focuses on reducing the reliance on transplants through new drug developments for failing organs, increasing the viability of organs that are available for transplant by ensuring they can travel longer distances and be in a better condition before going to the recipient and reducing the likelihood of transplant rejection and the need for retransplantation.”
The top fundraiser for 2023 is Frank, who is waiting on a double lung transplant at The Prince Charles Hospital. He rode in the Story Bridge 10km event and raised over $11,000.
Rob Hodgson, a heart transplant recipient, was a close second, raising $10,000 thanks to his incredible community – many of whom have their own connection to organ transplantation. Rob received his heart transplant about 6-months ago, and while he didn’t ride the streets of Brisbane at the event, he participated by riding 50 kilometres in a virtual ride from his Sydney home.
If you didn’t get the chance to pedal to power more life-changing medical research, it is not too late to make a difference.
You can support an hour of research via The Common Good for $48, and every dollar and every hour gets us closer to medical breakthroughs that can change lives.
