A JOCKEY who recovered from cancer and went on to win the Grand National has thanked the Swindon-based Wasdell Group for helping his sponsored walk raise £108,000 for cancer research. Bob Champion was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1979 but, after punishing treatment, went on to win the 1981 Grand National on Aldaniti. He then established the Bob Champion Cancer Trust which has raised more than £15 million for the Bob Champion Cancer Research Laboratory, a research facility dedicated to treating male cancers. Four decades on from his Grand National win, Bob has walked a 191-mile route to raise more funds forhis charity. The 191 miles represent the 191 days between his initial cancer diagnosis and receiving the all-clear.
The Bob Champion Cancer Trust has raised £15million since it was founded in 1983. The trust raises funds for the Bob Champion Cancer Research Laboratory – part of the largest male-dedicated research facility in Europe, situated at the Institute of Cancer Research in Sutton – as well as for the Bob Champion Research and Education Building at the University of East Anglia in Norwich. Mr Champion, who hails from Guisborough, admits he was totally taken aback when he was told he was to receive the honour. “I’m absolutely chuffed to death. It was a big surprise to me,” he said. “I got an MBE quite a long time ago, when I won the National, but this is for my cancer trust.