With the summer racing season in full swing, tri service charity Toe In The Water has announced that the world-renowned vintage champagne producer, Pol Roger, is to be a supporting partner for 2013.
Pol Roger will be an official partner to the ‘Team Endeavour’ Rolex Fastnet Race campaign facilitated by Toe In The Water.
‘Team Endeavour’, comprising a crew of wounded and injured members of the armed forces, will be taking part in the Rolex Fastnet on 11th August. Project ‘Team Endeavour’ is jointly funded by the Team Army Sports Foundation and the Endeavour Fund, an initiative created by The Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.
Tri service charity, Toe In The Water, are providing their full support to the team of ‘graduates’ taking part in the iconic race by loaning their Farr 52 race yacht with Director of Racing and serving Royal Engineer, Capt Lloyd Hamilton MBE taking up the position of skipper.
In addition to ‘Team Endeavour’, two Toe In The Water graduates will be racing on-board the Open 60, Artemis Ocean Racing, in the iconic offshore race around the Fastnet rock. Artemis Ocean Racing will be skippered by sailing legend, Brian Thompson, who is also an ambassador for the charity.
Using competitive sailing as a rehabilitation tool, tri service initiative Toe In The Water, aims to re-inspire the men and women of our Armed Forces who have sustained profound and traumatic injuries often including the loss of limbs, to move beyond their injury and become re-inspired by life.
For injured service personnel, many of whom have been wounded in active service in Afghanistan and Iraq, participation in a programme acts as an extension to their rehabilitation process, giving them the chance to compete in sailing at a high level and improve their self-confidence and outlook on life. With medical support on hand both on and off the water, the patients race with and against able bodied crew and are able to push themselves out of their comfort zones enabling them to recognise their own capabilities.
Toe In The Water receives no statutory funding and relies entirely on voluntary contributions from individuals, trusts and companies. The swell of public support in particular from the sailing world has been phenomenal; it is with this backing and that of the military that competitive campaigns like Toe In The Water will continue to succeed and help meet the needs of our injured servicemen and women.