My Story

On September 18, 2021, I plan to complete my first full Ironman. This event consists of a 3.86 km swim, a 180.25 km bike ride, and a 42.20 km run. I’ve always been a recreational athlete and competed in two half Ironman events back in 2018 and 2019. With the pandemic preventing me from competing last year and the Olympics currently taking place in Tokyo, I was particularly excited to take up the Ironman challenge this year and decided I would sign up for the full triathlon.

Not long after signing up, I realized this was also a perfect opportunity to raise funds for a cause that I am deeply passionate about — the Savar Children’s Village, a school and shelter for vulnerable girls in Bangladesh. Savar has been close to my heart ever since I travelled to Bangladesh with International Needs in 2018 to learn more about the program and meet some of the wonderful staff and children at the school. Since then, I’ve been a corporate partner of International Needs through my business, Perma-Dry of Moncton, where we contribute a portion of our sales to support the Savar Children’s Village.

My Pledge

Now, I’d like to take my involvement a step further and on a more personal level. After all, through challenge comes growth, and I believe life is about taking small steps to build a better world while becoming the best version of ourselves along the way. Alongside Shaun Sutcliffe, Executive Director of International Needs New Zealand, we have committed to raising $50,000 for the Savar Children’s Village through completing this Ironman. It would mean the world to me to get support from my friends and family to help me further contribute to the amazing work taking place in Bangladesh. 

Shaun Sutcliffe (top left) and Mark Beaman (bottom left)