More than 300 cyclists take part in Ride for the Living during record heatwave
97 year-old Auschwitz survivor Bernard Offen was among the participants completing the annual fundraising ride from Auschwitz-Birkenau to JCC Krakow
More than 300 cyclists from around the world braved record-breaking temperatures to ride from Auschwitz-Birkenau to the Jewish Community Centre (JCC) Krakow during this year’s fundraising Ride for the Living.
The annual event, now in its 11th year, took place on 26 June, with participants completing the route in temperatures of around 32°C. The programme also included a walk from the site of the former Płaszów concentration camp to JCC Krakow.
Among those taking part were 97-year-old Auschwitz survivor Bernard Offen, who completed the ride on a tandem bicycle alongside JCC Krakow chief executive Jonathan Ornstein, and 88-year-old Holocaust survivor Leon Malmed, who completed the entire 60-mile route.
The event also attracted a number of senior dignitaries, including US Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose, Israeli Ambassador to Poland Yaakov Finkelstein and Secretary of State in the Chancellery of the President of Poland, Wojciech Kolarski.
Ride for the Living was launched in 2014 to raise funds for JCC Krakow while giving participants the opportunity to learn about the history of the Holocaust and Jewish life in Poland. The initiative was inspired by Robert Desmond, who cycled 1,350 miles from London to Auschwitz, visiting Second World War liberation sites along the way.
Following the ride, participants and members of the local Jewish community gathered for a Shabbat dinner at JCC Krakow, attended by around 620 people.
JCC Krakow provides social, educational and welfare services for the city’s Jewish community of around 1,100 people. It is also the primary care organisation for around 60 Holocaust survivors, coordinating transport, meals, rehabilitation and other support services.
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