Memory of love I lost will spur me on 300-mile ride
Zoe’s Sport Relief cycle for suicide boyfriend
ZOE Ball is saddling up for a gruelling 300-mile charity cycle ride after her boyfriend Billy Yates killed himself last year.
The novice cyclist and TV star, 47, has signed up for the five-day BT Sport Relief Challenge to raise awareness of mental health issues.
On March 5 the Radio 2 host will face her “crippling fears” of the open road on the first 70 miles of her journey.
The mum-of-two’s Hardest Road Home journey will take her from her place of birth, Blackpool, to her hometown of Brighton.
But the Strictly: It Takes Two host will be encouraged by a desire to help others cope with bereavement.
Zoe suffered a devastating loss in May when cameraman Billy, 40, who struggled with depression, was found hanged in his South West London flat.
Zoe said: “I lost someone very dear to me who really struggled with depression.
“It was really important that I did something. Thinking of the reason I signed up for this challenging adventure will spur me on. “Knowing that every penny we raise will make
such a difference to so
Knowing every penny raised will make such a difference feels great ZOE BALL WHO IS CYCLING 300 MILES FOR CHARITY
many different people’s lives is a great feeling.
“I hope that my endeavours inspire others to do something that moves them for Sport Relief too.”
Zoe hopes to find strength through friends and family who will join her along the way.
She said there are many questions about supporting those closest to you with mental health illnesses. In the UK, one in four people will experience a mental health problem over the course of any year.
Yesterday Zoe said she’d been training hard for her epic ride but had suffered “a few predictable and embarrassing falls and lots of chafing cream applied”.
Her route will take her through Widnes, Cheshire; Upton Magna, Shropshire; Stratford-upon-Avon, West Mids and Marlow, Bucks. Ahead of her challenge she visited The Tomorrow Project in Nottingham, which supports individuals and communities to prevent suicide.
In November, Zoe posted a picture of herself with Billy and said how much she missed him, adding: “You are at peace, and we can take comfort from that.”
Ball, separated from DJ husband Norman Cook in 2016, has found love again with new boyfriend Michael Reed.
The pair were spotted outside her new cottage in a village in East Sussex, following her decision to quit Brighton.
Support the BT Sport Relief Challenge: Zoe’s Hardest Road Home at sportrelief. com/Zoe