Normandy veteran, 96, to cycle more than 100 miles to raise money for charity
Normandy Veteran Len Gibbon, 96, has decided to recreate his historic journey across the Channel by cycling the distance from Portsmouth to Gold Beach on a static bike in aid of charity Care for Veterans.
Len aims to complete the 104-mile distance by June 6, which will mark the 76th anniversary of the first Normandy landings.
Len, pictured, was raised in Elephant & Castle and joined the Royal Army Service Corps as a Dispatch Rider when he was just 20 years old.
In early June 1944, Len got married and then, four days later, he was posted to Normandy. He arrived there on June 14, eight days into the operation.
Len was in Normandy through to the end of the invasion, then went to the Netherlands via Brussels, and was part of Operation Market Garden in September of 1944 – the bloody Allied bid to drive the Germans all the way back to Berlin which was halted at the Bridge at Arnhem. By the war’s end, he was in Germany.
Len realised he needed extra help after having several falls at home, and moved in Care for Veterans (CFV) in Eastbourne last December.
Dance fan Len said: “I’m doing this challenge to help raise money for Care for Veterans because it’s a wonderful place. It’s going really well so far – hopefully I’ll finish on time.”
CFV must raise £1.9 million this year to provide its award-winning care to the veterans who live there – many of its fundraising events have been cancelled.
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