Colour Dash 2016
Ireland’s favourite 5K event is back as the Irish Cancer Society today launched Colour Dash, sponsored by Aldi Ireland. Colour Dash, which has returned following popular demand, is ready to welcome ‘dashers’ of all ages and fitness levels and is now taking place in four locations across the country.
The Colour Dash is a five kilometre run that sees participants run, jog and walk the course. At each kilometre, a different colour of powder paint is thrown at participants as they dash their way to the finish line. The event is open to all from fitness fanatics to those just looking for a fun day out for all the family.
This year, Colour Dash is coming to Dublin, Cork, Galway and for the first time ever, Sligo. It marks the fourth year of Colour Dash and to date,10,500 people have participated in the vibrant event with overfour kilograms of colourful powder paint thrown on ‘dashers’. Colour Dash has grown from one event in 2013 to four events in 2016 following sold out events last summer.
The Colour Dash supports the Irish Cancer Society’s free cancer services for cancer patients and their families across the country. Over 40,000 people are now diagnosed with cancer every year in Ireland and one in three people will receive a cancer diagnosis during their lifetime. The Society’s free cancer services include a Volunteer Driver Service bringing cancer patients to and from their chemotherapy treatment, a palliative care Night Nursing service, a Counselling Service, the Cancer Nurseline 1800 200 700 and 13 Daffodil Centres providing cancer support and information in hospitals nationwide.
John McCormack, CEO of the Irish Cancer Society said: “The Irish Cancer Society’s Colour Dash offers the opportunity to inject some colour into your summer. With events taking place nationwide, we hope the public will join us in getting active, having some fun and raising funds for vital cancer services while doing so.
We know that cancer has or will affect almost every family in Ireland. As an independent charity, we rely on events such as Colour Dash to help us continue our work in supporting cancer patients at every stage of their cancer journey. Taking part in the Colour Dash is a fun day out for all the family but it also truly makes a difference. We look forward to welcoming a colourful army to our Colour Dash events nationwide.”
The Irish Cancer Society is one of several charities to benefit from Aldi Ireland’s community support programme in 2016. It was specifically chosen by Aldi staff in a company-wide poll because so many staff knew people affected by cancer. Through a combination of sponsorship, a staff ‘Bric a Brac’ collection, staff donations, Colour Dash entry fees and sales of Daffodil Day daffodils and charity cards at Aldi’s stores, Aldi and its staff have raised over €100,000 for the Irish Cancer Society so far this year.
Commenting, Aldi Ireland’s Group Buying Director Finbar McCarthy said: "Aldi is delighted to support the 2016 Colour Dash and partner with the Irish Cancer Society as part of our community support programme. Our staff voted to support the Irish Cancer Society this year and they will be delighted to know their efforts have helped raise over €100,000, making a real difference to people affected by cancer. The whole Aldi team has shown huge enthusiasm for all our Irish Cancer Society fundraising initiatives and I am sure our colleagues across our 123 Irish stores will get behind the Colour Dash.”
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The five kilometre route has five colourful themes to represent various aspect of cancer. The first kilometre is yellow to represent lung cancer, kilometre two is green to represent bowel cancer, then follows the purple kilometre for cancer survivorship and finally the blue and pink kilometres to represent prostate cancer and breast cancer respectively.
The Irish Cancer Society’s Colour Dash will take place in the following locations:
· Galway – NUIG – Sunday 12th June
· Dublin – Phoenix Park – Saturday 18th June
· Cork – The Old Railway Line– Sunday 26th June
· Sligo – Location and date soon to be confirmed
Each Colour Dash event is 5km of fun and colour, with entertainment provided on the day. Registration is €30 per person, and free for under 12’s accompanied by an adult. Visit www.cancer.ie/colourdash to register or Callsave 1850 60 60 60.
The Irish Cancer Society’s Colour Dash is sponsored by Aldi and supported by Spin 103.8, iRadio and Red FM.
