Betfair Lifecycle Challenge launched its 11th event yesterday, Thursday, the 12th of March at the Marina Hotel, Corinthia Beach Resort. The launch was addressed by Mr Alan Curry, chairperson for Lifecycle organisation and Mr Anthony Bugeja, secretary for the same organisation. The title sponsor for this year’s event is Befair and was represented by Mr Mark Galea. Prof Guido DeMarco was the guest speaker for the launch and addressed the audience expressing his gratitude to the aid given to renal patients in the past and that given in the future.

Betfair Lifecycle Challenge is organising the 11th event which will start in Turkey and end in Damascus in Syria. This year the route will follow part of the ‘silk road’ taken by Marco Polo in the 13th century – hence the theme for this year is ‘Damascus – Silk road and beyond.’

Since its inception Lifecycle Challenge has gathered a momentum which has enabled it to be taken to another level. The current committee members are taking on this challenge with enthusiasm and energy. In the coming months the committee will work towards directing Lifecycle Challenge towards a new direction with matured goals.

Mr Curry explained that in the past the main goal for Lifecycle Challenge was to help renal patients by improving their quality of life. He said that this goal, which is one that directly addresses the community, will be retained but another area of interest is to be developed – the area of research.

The innovation for Lifecycle this year is the concept of creating a research fund. It is only through research that one can hope that a renal patient will truly enjoy a life style most of us take as fore-granted. Mr Curry said that the benefits of research may not be imminent but they are definitely the way forward. The research grant is obviously the way forward to address the problems of renal patients and Betfair Lifecycle Challenge is to work towards achieving this ultimate goal.

Mr Anthony Bugeja, head nurse of the Renal Unit at Mater Dei and the secretary to Lifecycle Organisation emphasised the importance of contributing towards the community aspect of Lifecycle’s venture. The aid towards the community will be catered for via the machines, which are always in high demand, the acquisition of medication (for example, phosphate blockers) for the patients which are very expensive. Another problem many renal patients face is the loss of their job due to the long hours they are constrained to spend on the dialysis machine. This year Lifecycle will use some of the sponsorship money obtained so as to install internet within the renal unit which patients may use whilst doing dialysis.

After launching the world’s first successful online betting exchange in June 2000, Betfair has grown into a multi-billion dollar business with an established portfolio of online gaming products comprising of poker, casino and games. The company now has in excess of two million registered customers with over 50% of all new registrations coming from outside the UK and Ireland.

Betfair employs over 1,350 people globally. Its headquarters are in Hammersmith in West London, while its international business is hosted in Malta. It also has large operational bases in Stevenage and Australia with a software development business in Romania. Betfair is a two-time winner of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the UK – the only betting company in the world ever to achieve this level of recognition. In 2006, the company established its Malta operation and is now the largest iGaming operator on the Island employing around 200 employees. The Malta office is Betfair’s Headquarters for international business.

Betfair is committed to ensuring the sustainability of the communities in which it operates. Its broad Community Investment programme enables the business to support a wide range of causes and support employees to do volunteering work.

In 2008 Betfair joined forces with the Ministry for Resources and Rural Affairs to support the Maltese national cleanup campaign. Betfair has organised six of its own events with over 50 employees participating each time. To ensure that this is sustainable, Betfair will also be sponsoring a number of permanent litter bins to be set up around the Dingli Cliffs area.

Last year, the organisation teamed up with Lifecycle to organise the Betfair Lifecycle Celebrity Challenge.

Mark J Galea, Human Resources Manager, said that “this year Betfair is proud to renew its support for Lifecycle as title sponsors. As an innovative, sports-driven business, committed to the island of Malta, we look forward to bringing the Betfair Lifecycle to life and most importantly supporting this incredibly worthwhile charity”.

Applications are now open. For further information please visit www.lifecyclechallenge.com.

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