A TEAM of five senior managers – including Simon Owens from DS Smith’s Launceston site – will cycle, kayak and run 270 miles from Brussels to London to raise funds for Heart Research UK and Cancer Research UK.

Starting at the company’s European Head Office in Belgium, the seven-day pursuit commenced on Monday.

The dedicated team, led by the managing director of DS Smith’s UK Packaging Division, Gareth Jenkins, will cycle from Roeselare to Boulogne, kayak across the English Channel, and complete the challenge with a 104-mile run from Dover to DS Smith’s Group Head Office in London.

This latest charity challenge follows on from the successful Scotland to Cornwall cycle ride in 2013, which saw the business raise £100,000 in aid of the same two charities.

Gareth Jenkins, managing director of DS Smith’s UK Packaging Division, said: “Health and fitness is really important to us as a team and being able to undertake this challenge to raise funds for two fantastic charities is a great opportunity. We know that the whole company, along with our customers and suppliers, will get involved to cheer us on and help us pass the finish line.”

Simon Owens, managing director at DS Smith’s Launceston site, said: “We have all been training really hard in preparation for this challenge and are looking forward to getting stuck in. I’m sure it is going to be a really tough week but it is all in aid of two worthy causes which will encourage us to pedal, paddle and run on!”

Employees from DS Smith’s 33 sites across the UK will be trying to match the 270 miles being covered by the participants in the challenge by taking as many steps as they can during the seven days, with the winning site receiving the Healthy Hearts Cup. It is expected that 20,000 steps a day will be taken by participants during the course of the challenge.

Leah Mitchell, local fundraising manager at Cancer Research UK, added: “We’re delighted that DS Smith is supporting us and would like to thank everyone who is taking part. We receive no government funding for our ground-breaking research, so money raised by supporters, like DS Smith, is crucial to help us beat cancer sooner.”

This latest endeavour supports the ongoing health initiatives run across DS Smith’s UK sites in conjunction with Heart Research UK. Each site is working towards achieving bronze, silver and gold Healthy Heart Mark Awards by introducing new fitness and nutritional initiatives, encouraging employees to lead healthy lives.

Heart Research UK’s corporate fundraiser, Jodie Thomson, was impressed with the commitment of the DS Smith team. She said: “This is a fantastic challenge by the team, and a real endurance test.

“We’re pleased that they are taking the healthy heart lessons they learned with Heart Research UK’s lifestyle team to the next level, and will see the health benefits from their challenge, as well as raising funds for our charity.”

To donate to the cause visit DS Smith’s JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com/company/dssmith, follow DS Smith on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram for updates on challenge.