Rick Hansen 25th anniversary relay inspires millions

In 1986, Rick Hansen inspired millions of people around the world when he began his Man in Motion World Tour, advocating accessibility for people with limited mobility and spearheading a crusade to find a cure for spinal cord injuries.

For 26 months, Hansen and his team traveled by wheelchair, bicycle and foot through 34 countries and over 40,000 kilometres, meeting thousands of people along the way and inspiring the creation of the Rick Hansen Foundation.

It has since raised more than $250 million to accelerate a cure for spinal cord injuries.

This year, Hansen is once again embarking on a journey of awareness and hope, as he travels alongside 7,000 medal bearers. Together they will run, walk, wheel or bike through 600 communities in a 12,000-kilometre journey across Canada.

Over the course of nine months, participants will travel through sun or sleet to transport the Rick Hansen medal across the country. Each medal bearer is expected to run about 250 metres and the relay runners will average 40 to 80 kilometres each day.

“Twenty-five years ago I set my dream in motion; one that took me through 34 countries and across 40,000 kilometres as we raised awareness of the potential of people with disabilities,” said Hansen in a press release. “The 25th anniversary relay will be an exciting opportunity for Canadians to join the journey, to keep moving forward and to create a new dream.”

On Monday, October 24, the Rick Hansen Relay will touch the Laurentians as it passes through Saint-Jerome, Lachute, Grenville, Montebello and Gatineau on its way towards its final stop in Vancouver on May 22, 2012.

Dozens of medal bearers will help on October 24, including former Canadian track team member Steve O’Brien, who said that he feels incredible honoured to bear the medal on its passage through Lachute.

“As a person who loves to get people moving, it’s an honour to be a part of this. Growing up, Terry Fox was always my idol, but when I saw Rick Hansen wheeling across the world I was moved by his athleticism and bravery,” said O’Brien.

In 2014, O’Brien will be undertaking his own race across the nation as he follows in the steps of Terry Fox to raise money for cancer and motivate people of all ages to get moving.

Supporting from the sidelines, Leslie Bangs from Grenville says she is cheering for two heroes on October 24: “I watched Rick wheel through our community 25 years ago in awe and admiration. I never would have dreamed that I would be watching my son-in-law, Joey Desjardins, a paraplegic since 2009, hand-cycle down that same stretch of highway to build his strength and push himself to greater challenges.”

A nurse for 32 years, Bangs says that she is amazed by the limitless potential of disabled persons, and the inspiration their courage instills in her.

Jackie Lalancette, 37, is the first medal bearer to run through Grenville and she hopes to inspire her three little girls to open their eyes to the world of possibilities.

“As a palliative care worker I try to help in my own small way,” she said. “I work with a lot of seniors and people with special needs and I understand the importance of this relay. I remember when I was young and Rick Hansen did his first run and it was very inspirational to me that he did it alone.”

Former pack-a-day smoker Ray Zahab is a long-distance runner who has dedicated himself to advocating the message that anyone can get up and move. When he runs through Gatineau on October 24, Zahab says he will do his best to represent a Canadian hero who inspired him.

Zahab’s personal mission in life is to exceed expectations; in 2006, he made history when he ran 7,500 kilometres across the Sahara Desert to raise awareness about the water crisis in Africa. Shortly afterward, he formed the Impossible 2 Possible foundation that is dedicated to inspire and educate youth adventure through learning and inclusion in expeditions.

People of all abilities and walks of life will join together for the 25th anniversary Rick Hansen Relay and they are calling on supporters from across the nation to line the streets and to support this journey.