Paralympian Anna Turney has taken part in the nationwide ‘Running out of Time’ relay, a 2,661km climate relay from Ben Nevis to Big Ben.
Anna skied down the dry slope at Ackers Adventure near Birmingham in the West Midlands with the baton as part of the first ever British ‘Running out of Time’ Climate Relay, which has seen thousands take up the baton with the aim of inspiring the nation to take much greater collective action to reach net zero and protect our natural world.
Anna, who competed for Team GB in two Winter Games, told local media that being part of the Champions for Earth athletes’ movement gave her confidence that we can make a difference, we can change.
“I’m naturally quite optimistic. Climate change is scary, which is why we have to make a difference, but it is possible if we act now,” said Anna, who is also a mum of two young children, aged seven and two, and said that worrying for their future has also been a motivation.
The relay is travelling through 50 cities and towns including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Newcastle, York, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Oxford, Bristol, Cardiff, Swansea, Reading and London, finishing up by Big Ben on Tuesday July 11th with a closing ceremony in Parliament Square after visiting the Olympic Park and the Royal Docks.
Running out of Time co-founder Dan Thompson said: “There’s a lot of negativity and fear around climate change but what we wanted to do was to change the narrative to celebrate and highlight the sterling work already being carried on around the UK to inspire others that it is worthwhile trying to change the status quo and take action. The relay will use the power of sport to literally connect the many incredible projects taking place with an unbroken chain of participants.”
Images credit Mike Brogden
