Bolton Council‘s Donna Cooper successfully completed an epic 12-hour static bike challenge in the foyer of Bolton Town Hall on Wednesday October 8.

Donna, who works in the Mayor’s office took on the challenge of pedalling from 7am to 7pm in recognition of the care and support the hospice provided to both her mum and gran.

She said: “There’s an athlete that I admire who says, ‘choosing to suffer is a privilege,’ and I’m choosing to do this.

” I’ll be in pain and maybe a few days after, but the people at the hospice don’t have that choice.

(Image: Bolton Council)

“I’m really fortunate that my body allows me to do crazy things like this, so if I can raise some money in the process, why wouldn’t I?”

Bolton Hospice provides specialist care and support for local people with terminal or life-threatening illnesses and their families.

Unlike the NHS, it is not fully funded by the government and relies heavily on charitable donations.

She added: “The Bolton Hospice does an amazing job, so I just want to raise as much money as I can.

“They only get a little bit of money from central government and the rest comes from donations.”

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Having already completed six IRONMAN challenges, Donna said this was a new kind of test.

She said: “Outside cycling, you get a bit of a rest going downhill, whereas this is constant pedalling, it’s quite hard.

“This was a whole new challenge for me. I’d been quite worried thinking, is it even possible? Can I do it?”

Throughout the day, council staff, supporters and members of the public rallied behind her as she cycled in the Town Hall foyer.

She said: “When everyone was coming into work in the morning, people were donating so much and getting really emotional because everybody knows someone who has been helped by the hospice and they just want to give back.”

Donna Cooper and Cllr Sean Fielding take on the static bike challenge, uniting to support the life-changing work of Bolton Hospice(Image: Newsquest)

Among those joining Donna on the bikes was Cllr Sean Fielding, Executive Cabinet Member for Adults and Community Housing, who said: “Donna is an inspiration.

“Just doing an hour to support the cause she’s backing seemed like a small thing to ask, so I was more than willing to do it.

“Everybody knows someone who has had care at Bolton Hospice, so it’s an important cause to support because they rely so much on charitable donations.

“It’s vital that, as leaders in the town, the council is seen supporting that – that’s why it’s a pleasure to do this today.”

Emma Mitson, corporate and Community Lead at Bolton Hospice, added: “We are thrilled that Donna chose to raise vital funds for Bolton Hospice by taking on a 12-hour cycle challenge.

“Not only was it a fantastic fundraising effort, completing it in Bolton Town Hall itself was a great way to raise awareness of the hospice in our community.

“As a local charity, we rely on supporters like Donna to help us continue caring for local people facing life-limiting illnesses, so we’d like to say a huge thank you and well done to her.”

Donations can be made online to support Donna’s incredible effort and the ongoing work of Bolton Hospice.