Some of you may know that last March our CEO John Neal suffered serious injuries in a collision with a car. John's road to recovery was a long and difficult one after breaking 13 bones in his body including 7 ribs and shattering his hip. On top of this, a third of his pelvis is now metal. However, even this accident couldn't dampen his spirits for long and John is now on a mission to get back on his bike, prove that perseverance pays off, and raise money for some extremely worthwhile charities. And so, this year, John committed to undertaking not one, not two, but three cycle challenges that will push his body to the very limit.

It all began back in May when John completed Ride London, travelling the 160km in 5 hours and 50 minutes. This was swiftly followed by London to Brussels in July in partnership with teams from Lloyd’s, Scor, Brit and Lockton, which saw the teams travelling 516km in three days. A shout out to Lloyd’s colleagues Ceara Howey, Elliot Maule, Annie Roberts and Ben Thomas who joined John on the journey!

But that’s not the end for John. This September he’ll be undertaking an epic ride across Portugal with his son that will see him travel from Chaves to Faro, covering 750km involving 9.5km of climbing in five days; by far his biggest challenge to date. The going will get tough pretty quickly on that first day when they’ll be cycling 170km with a 4km climb (almost half the total climb across the five days); although to be honest all days are going to be fairly challenging, especially given how hot it still is on the continent.

Of course, there’s a very good reason he’s doing this and it’s to raise money for our three Lloyd's of London Foundation charity partners: Doorstep Library, Mental Health Foundation and Thames Reach. And of course, it wouldn’t be a charitable challenge for John if I didn’t raise money for the Charlie Watkins Foundation; a charity very close to his heart.

John wasn’t sure if he’d get the chance to do this again and so he’s giving everything he’s got to this last challenge and is aiming to up the fundraising as much as possible.

Thank you to everyone who’s donated so far – your support means a lot to John and the team. Wish him luck!

Supporting communities close to us:

Lloyd's has a long history of supporting the communities around us: for over 300 years, we have helped turn opportunity into progress. We believe everyone should have the opportunity to live a confident, empowered and resilient life wherever in the world they live.

We partner with charities to build more resilient, more sustainable and more inclusive communities, empowering these communities through tangible action and long-term partnerships.

The Lloyd's market is at the heart of everything we do. We channel the markets resolve, relationships and resources to open doors and drive real change for people around the world instilling confidence and unlocking independence.

Find out more at www.lloyds.com/foundation