Malakoff Corporation Berhad (Malakoff) welcomed the New Year with 1,100 cyclists participating in the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride 2012/2013, covering 250km across Penang, Perak and Kedah over two consecutive days. The initiative successfully raised RM50,000 for the Morality Education Home and Pertubuhan Penyayang Chi Yun Bukit Mertajam.

For the fourth consecutive year, Malakoff has sponsored and organised the “Sports for Charity” Ride as part of its Malakoff Community Partnerships - the Company’s flagship Corporate Social Responsibility platform. The event was co-organised with the Penang State Government and the Knights of the Round Table.

Speaking at the event, Lydia Ong, the Chairman of the Penang State Youth and Sports, Women, Family and Community Development Committee said, “Over the years, the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride has evolved beyond just an ordinary cycling event. It has clearly grown to establish itself as an integral part of Penang’s sports and tourism events calendar.”

“The ‘Sports for Charity’ Ride had 1,000 cyclists participating in addition to 100 Malakoff’s employees and business associates who have also contributed RM50 each as part of their registration fees. With their support, I am proud that we have raised another RM50,000 for two welfare organisations this year,” she added.

The two beneficiaries of the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride are the Morality Education Home and Pertubuhan Penyayang Chi Yun Bukit Mertajam. The Morality Education Home is a care and training centre for children of single parents as well as abused families while the Pertubuhan Penyayang Chi Yun Bukit Mertajam provides shelter and care for the orphans, abandoned and abused children. Each organisation received a contribution of RM25,000.

Over the years, the Ride has effectively raised a total of RM180,000 to benefit organisations such as the St. John Ambulance, the National Autistic Society of Malaysia and the Penang Bahnhof Youth Centre.

Zainal Abidin Jalil, the Chief Executive Officer of Malakoff said, “I want to take this opportunity to congratulate all participants for their effort in riding across the three states for a charitable cause.”

“Their accomplishment is without a doubt extraordinary and praiseworthy. I am sure the participants have had a memorable time and have formed great bonds of friendship among each other,” he added.

Since the inaugural Ride in 2009/2010, the Ride has received an increasing positive response from the community. Registration for the latest edition was closed in just six hours as the slots were fully filled.

This year, the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride was flagged off at the Butterworth Outer Ring Road on New Year’s Eve and cyclists covered the challenging terrains of 180km along the trunk and coastal roads in Kedah, Perak as well as Penang. Participants then paddled into the dawn of 2013 the following day touring around Penang Island for another 70km, passing by quaint heritage sites and buildings.

Expressing his gratitude to the co-organisers, Zainal said, “I must thank the co-organisers for their support. It has certainly encouraged us to do better for the Malakoff Community Partnerships and roll out more sporting and charity based events such as the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride.”

The two-day event was supported by other agencies including Polis Diraja Malaysia, Delta, Lebuhraya Lingkaran Luar Butterworth (BORR) and the local authorities namely, Majlis Perbandaran Pulau Pinang and Majlis Perbandaran Seberang Prai (MPSP).

For further information on the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride and future sporting initiatives, please visit https://www.malakoff.com.my/ and www.facebook.com/Malakoff.MCP