Mine Survivor to Bike Across Death Valley

The following is a press release from our friends at Mines Advisory Group and Stuart Hughes

Stuart Hughes, a BBC World Affairs Producer, who lost his leg in a landmine explosion in 2003 while covering the war in Iraq, is planning to cycle through Death Valley, California - one of the hottest places on earth - to raise �15,000 for the Mines Advisory Group (MAG). Funds raised will be used to help MAG clear dangerous remnants of conflict across the world.



On Monday 1st August, Hughes will launch the MAG / Ceia USA Death Valley challenge by starting his temperature acclimatisation in the special hothouse facility at The British Olympic Medical Centre, Harrow. Death Valley has summer temperatures averaging well over 100� Fahrenheit and has an annual rainfall of only 1.96 inches. The Centre uses a special chamber to create extreme conditions � heat, cold and altitude � to help elite British athletes in their training.
Stuart, who has just returned from covering the Tour de France, originally started cycling because he found walking difficult with his prosthetic leg. He is currently cycling 100 miles a week in preparation for the Death Valley challenge and will lead a team of four other cyclists on the 200 mile trip through the Valley in November 2005. Currently stationed in Iraq with the BBC, one co-cyclist Craig Summers, Safety and Security Adviser for the BBC�s High Risk Team, is overcoming the security issues by training on a stationary exercise bike in Baghdad!
Since stepping on an anti-personnel mine in 2003, Hughes has given talks across the UK and overseas to raise awareness of the scale of the international landmine problem. Hughes says �As a landmine survivor myself, I am proud to support MAG�s efforts to rid the world of these horrific weapons. By doing this gruelling challenge, we hope to raise enough funds to help clear the real death valleys � those areas across the world that are blighted by landmines.�
Nick Fellows of the British Olympic Medical Centre says: �Our acclimation chamber provides the perfect training environment for any competitive sport in extreme environments. The British Olympic Squad found it invaluable in their preparation for the Athens and Salt Lake City Olympics and a few sessions here will certainly stand Stuart in good stead for his Death Valley quest.�
Known for its �first-in last-out� approach to mine-infested regions of the world, MAG clears the way so that international aid agencies can safely deliver humanitarian assistance to war-torn communities. MAG employs more than 2,300 people worldwide and has destroyed close to two million landmines and unexploded bombs since 1992.
Stuart, who has just returned from covering the Tour de France, originally started cycling because he found walking difficult with his prosthetic leg. He is currently cycling 100 miles a week in preparation for the Death Valley challenge and will lead a team of four other cyclists on the 200 mile trip through the Valley in November 2005. Currently stationed in Iraq with the BBC, one co-cyclist Craig Summers, Safety and Security Adviser for the BBC�s High Risk Team, is overcoming the security issues by training on a stationary exercise bike in Baghdad!
Since stepping on an anti-personnel mine in 2003, Hughes has given talks across the UK and overseas to raise awareness of the scale of the international landmine problem. Hughes says �As a landmine survivor myself, I am proud to support MAG�s efforts to rid the world of these horrific weapons. By doing this gruelling challenge, we hope to raise enough funds to help clear the real death valleys � those areas across the world that are blighted by landmines.�
Nick Fellows of the British Olympic Medical Centre says: �Our acclimation chamber provides the perfect training environment for any competitive sport in extreme environments. The British Olympic Squad found it invaluable in their preparation for the Athens and Salt Lake City Olympics and a few sessions here will certainly stand Stuart in good stead for his Death Valley quest.�
Known for its �first-in last-out� approach to mine-infested regions of the world, MAG clears the way so that international aid agencies can safely deliver humanitarian assistance to war-torn communities. MAG employs more than 2,300 people worldwide and has destroyed close to two million landmines and unexploded bombs since 1992.