Formerly paralysed endurance athlete Esmée Gummer will bring her inspiring 5,000km challenge to Ripon this weekend as part of a nationwide mission to get one million people moving.
Esmée will visit the city on Sunday (2nd August), hosting a free, inclusive 5K where people of all ages and abilities are invited to walk, jog or run together.
The Ripon event forms part of The Nation's 5K, an ambitious challenge that will see Esmée travel 5,000 kilometres across 77 UK cities in just 99 days.
At the age of 18, Esmée was paralysed following complications from surgery and was told she might never walk again.
Now recovered, she's using her own experience to encourage others to discover that movement doesn't have to start alone.
Esmée said:
"This isn't a stunt. This is forever for me. What matters most is what happens after I leave each city."
The challenge also has a strong connection to Harrogate.
Tom Kellett, who was born in Harrogate and now lives in Australia, is co-founder of fitness accountability app Effit, which is supporting the nationwide tour.
Tom was inspired to create the app after making a fitness pact with two friends during lockdown, agreeing to pay a $20 forfeit whenever one of them missed a gym session.
The challenge helped him lose 35kg, complete a full Ironman and take on a series of endurance events, eventually leading to the launch of Effit.
Rather than asking people to simply watch an endurance challenge unfold, The Nation's 5K invites local communities to get involved by taking part themselves.
Each stop on the tour becomes a free community event designed to help people take their first step towards a more active lifestyle, reconnect with movement and meet others doing the same.
The initiative is supported by Effit, the fitness community app co-founded by Tom, allowing participants to connect before each event, set movement goals, join local groups, track challenges and continue supporting one another long after the tour has moved on.
The nationwide campaign is also backed by partners including realbuzz and parkrun, with organisers hoping to inspire one million people to say "yes" to movement together.
The free Ripon event takes place on Sunday 2nd August. Registration and further information are available via The Nation's 5K website.
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