Elite athletes will swim, cycle, run and row to raise money for corona research

What do elite athletes do when the summer’s championships have been cancelled due to the corona pandemic, but they still need to maintain their form?

The European champion in triathlon Line Brandt Pedersen from Silkeborg has challenged her brother, world champion in kayak, Mads Brandt Pedersen, to a race to see who can get from Silkeborg to Randers quickest – with her swimming, cycling and running, and him kayaking. At the same time, the race will be the focal point of fundraising for corona research at the Department of Biomedicine.

This is the first time Professor Søren Riis Paludan has experienced research funding arriving in this way, but after a little reflection, he said thank you to the young athletes offer.

"I have to say it’s a somewhat untraditional source of funding, and we also had to hear a little more about how they intended to approach it. Who and what we’re associated with is not unimportant," says Søren Riis Paludan.

Specifically, the athletes will combine their training needs with their wish to support research into the coronavirus. Line Brandt Pedersen explains:

"As one championships after another was cancelled, I realised that I’d have to do something different to motivate myself to keep up my training. And, at the same time, I wanted to support the fight against corona. And the idea just grew from here," she says of the brother versus sister battle, which has now escalated into a sports event with live-streaming and fundraising on 9 May. The sports arena is a stretch of the river Gudenå between Silkeborg and Randers. About seventy kilometres all together.

Follow the event on Facebook

While the race is streamed via social media, the audience can make donations which will benefit Søren Riis Paludan’s research team.

“The corona crisis has affected me just like it has everyone else, and I want to do something to help. I think the best way for me to do that is to support the people who are actually working on developing treatment,” says Line Brandt Pedersen about the initiative.

Researchers are currently working hard to develop a new vaccine against COVID-19 as well as new testing and treatment options for patients affected by the coronavirus. Professor Søren Riis Paludan is pleased by the athletes support. 

"It's a fantastic generous gesture by Line and Mads do this for the benefit of the research. We’re in a situation where we’ve had to quickly establish research facilities for corona research, and this requires all the funding we can get. Line and Mads event can help to raise awareness of the research among some of the groups in society who’re not normally interested in university research. I think this is beneficial for the research. So we’re very grateful for their support," says Søren Riis Paludan.

How the race will take place

• The event starts at Andetovet in Silkeborg on 9 May at 10:00 and ends at Justesens Lawn in Randers at approx. 14:45
• Mads will row a kayak from Andetovet in Silkeborg to Justesens Lawn in Randers
• Line will swim from Andetovet in Silkeborg to Resenbro, cycle from here via the Trækstien to Tange, and then run via the Trækstien to Randers
• In total, the journey is expected to take between 4.5-5 hours

How to follow the athletes

• The event will be live-streamed and can be followed on Facebook 
• The live-stream will have two commentators – Lasse Stengaard aka the Tri-Oracle, and Rene Larsen – who will also be interviewing guests

How to make a donation

• The Facebook page includes a link to the fundraising platform, where it is also possible to participate in the prize draw and win prizes from Fusion and Parajumpers, among others.
• It is also possible to make a donation directly

Facts about the athletes

• Line Brandt Pedersen, 28, former professional footballer in the US, now a triathlon, duathlon and cross running athlete. She is European Champion in Ironman in the AG25-29 class and the Danish Champion in Half Ironman among all age groups. She made her debut as a professional duathlon athlete in 2019 at the European Championships, and represented the Danish athletics team in cross racing at the National, European and World Championships.
  
  
• Mads Brandt Pedersen, 23, made history in 2019 in kayaking by being the first person to ever become double world champion and double European champion in marathon kayak (both U23 and Senior). He is number 1 in the world rankings and was nominated for the BT Gold award at the nationally televised sports gala.

Contact

The corona research team at the Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University

Professor Søren Riis Paludan
srp@biomed.au.dk
(+45) 28 99 20 66

Professor Trine Mogensen
trine.mogensen@biomed.au.dk
(+45) 20 12 52 80

Associate professor Martin Roelsgaard Jakobsen
mrj@biomed.au.dk
(+45) 26 15 33 69

Associate Professor Christian Holm
holm@biomed.au.dk
(+45)  20 96 87 54

The athletes

Triathlete Line Brandt Pedersen
www.instagram.com/linebrandtpedersen
linepedersen66@msn.com
(+45) 91 31 10 87

Kayak rower Mads Brandt Pedersen
www.instagram.com/madsbrandtpedersen
mads.brandt@icloud.com
(+45)  25 56 35 69