‘It’s not just for the sake of my daughter but for anyone affected by this terrible disease’

ROWING FOR GOLD

Ann Atkins, 55, is the founder of Row For it, an annual event raising funds for the Brain tumour Charity. she began indoor rowing to support the charity after her daughter iona was diagnosed with a brain tumour at the age of five in 2007, and since her first Row For it event in 2013, has gone on to raise £120,000 while setting a number of British records. Ann says: ‘I first came across the charity when Iona was diagnosed and I began fundraising. A few years later, a trainer at my local gym noticed I was quite good on the indoor rowing machine and started taking me to competitions. I ended up winning the World Championships. I knew I wanted to use this new-found talent to fundraise so I launched Row For It. My motivation to keep raising money is not just for the sake of my daughter but for anyone affected by this terrible disease.’ Hilary McNally, who nominated Ann, says: ‘Ann has done an incredible amount of fundraising while winning gold at the English and British Indoor Rowing Championships, and rowing a marathon to mark her 50th birthday. She does all of this while still being an amazing mum to Iona, now 17.’