Muslim cyclists in UK pedal for noble causes

LONDON (AA) – A Muslim cycling group in London has been using its passion for cycling to raise money for charity for 10 years.

The Hope and Knowledge (H&K) Cycle Club organizes three main events: the National Ride, the Three Cities Ride and the Hijrah Ride.

The National Ride is a charity bike ride between two cities in the U.K.

The Three Cities Ride is a charity bike ride between three cities in Europe.

The Hijrah Ride is a charity bike ride between the two holiest cities in Islam, Makkah and Medina.

In the past, the club has raised money for a number of charities, including building a school in Mali, providing food for earthquake victims in Türkiye, and funding heart surgery for children in Tanzania.

The club is open to all, regardless of their religious background.

It has grown significantly over the past 10 years and now has over 140 members.

The club was founded by Shamsul Abdin, who wanted to create a space where Muslim cyclists could come together and ride for a cause.

“It’s a voluntary project … purely on a voluntary basis. We started off from just the love of cycling,” Abdin, 44, told Anadolu as the group geared up for its 10th National Ride.

In the last 10 years, the club has raised over $260,000 for charity.

Speaking to Turkey’s Anadolu Agency, 57-year-old Erdener Uysal, a member of this cycling group, said their activities help children in Tanzania.

In March, Uysal and four of his friends took part in an 80-kilometer trek from the East London Mosque to the Cambridge Central Mosque to raise funds.

They raised $23,000), which was used to provide food for about 300 families in Türkiye during the holy month of Ramadan.

Mohamed Hajat, 50, had joined the club because of his personal fitness. But then he continued his work to raise awareness for noble causes and support charities.

The club started off with about six or seven riders but the number has grown exponentially over the years, said Abdin.

Its riders are mostly of Bangladeshi origin, as well as Indians, Pakistanis and Turkish, ranging in age from 17 to 58.

-Open to everyone 

The members are predominantly Muslims, although it is open to everyone, said Abdin, who works as a bank analyst in London.

“When we started this 10 years ago, especially around London, there were hardly any Muslim cyclists out there, or any Muslim organization that was organizing events for Muslims,” he said.

Cycling was always known to be “a white, middle-class” thing, but we managed to change that, he added.

He said a lot of people joined the club during the COVID-19 pandemic and all the members have a strong “relationship and bond.”

“While we’re doing something to get fitter, doing a healthy thing, we’re also doing projects for different countries, which is amazing,” said Abdin.

Last year, the Three Cities ride ran from Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina to Nis in Serbia and Bulgaria’s capital Sofia.

This year, the group plans to go across Europe from Sofia to the Turkish metropolis Istanbul.

For the Hijrah Ride in 2022, nearly 40 people pedaled from Makkah to Medina in three days.

They raised some £123,000 (over $156,000), much more than their target.