The friends of two British CBS journalists killed in a Baghdad car bomb plan an epic cycle ride to raise charity funds in their memory.
Paul Douglas, a news cameraman, and James Brolan, a freelance sound man, died alongside a US soldier and an Iraqi translator when a bomb exploded as they accompanied US troops in central Baghdad.
Douglas and Brolan, both based in London, were in Iraq working for the US news network CBS when their convoy was hit almost three years ago.
To mark the third anniversary of their deaths, their colleagues Andy Clarke, Mark Ludlow and Andy Stevenson will cycle from London to a memorial for fallen journalists in Bayeux, France.
The three “overweight and out of shape” journalists will embark on their journey later this month to raise money for charities chosen by their late friends’ families.
They hope to complete the 200-mile ride from St Bride’s Church in London’s Fleet Street, to the the Reporters Without Borders memorial in Bayeux in just five days.
If successful, they will arrive in Bayeux on 29 May, three years to the day after their friends were killed.
The team will stop at locations along the route where memorials have been erected to the pair: St Bride’s; the CBS News European broadcast centre in Chiswick; Twickenham Stadium’s Walk of Legends; and the Bayeux memorial.
The money raised will be shared between the Rory Peck Trust and Reporters Without Borders, two charities which protect and support journalists around the world.
The war in Iraq has been the deadliest armed conflict for the press since the Second World War, according to Reporters Without Borders.
To find out more or to donate to the cause visit https://www.justgiving.com/bayeuxbybike
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
