Liberty Insurance donates €10,000 to the Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA) to celebrate the success of its inaugural Liberty Race

• The race aimed to support and promote a more inclusive society for people with functional abilities
• The race saw 1,155 participants across Ireland, Spain and Portugal
• Liberty comment: “Today’s donation of €10,000 is a demonstration of our commitment to our allyship with the IWA, an organisation that supports over 30,000 people with functional disabilities on a weekly basis”
• Irish Wheelchair Association Comment: “The Liberty Race was a fantastic example of inclusion and was enjoyed by IWA members and staff across the country

Liberty Insurance has committed to donating a €10,000 to the Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA), to celebrate the success of its inaugural Liberty Race, and as part of its wider commitment to supporting individuals with functional disabilities across Ireland.

The virtual race, which was hosted in partnership with the IWA, took place on the weekend of 03 – 05 December. It was open to individuals of all abilities, and its goal was to support and promote a more inclusive society for people with functional abilities.

Parallel Liberty races were also hosted in Spain and Portugal, featuring a total of 1,155 participants across the three jurisdictions. The Irish race was officially launched by three-time Olympian Natalya Coyle, fourtime Paralympian John Fulham and functional disability advocate and sports journalist Joanne O’Riordan.

Comment from Stuart Trotter, Branch Manager at Liberty Insurance:

“Liberty is committed to greater equity, diversity and inclusion within society, and central to this commitment is greater support and allyship with our family and friends, colleagues and customers with functional disabilities. “Today’s donation of €10,000 is a demonstration of our commitment to our allyship with the IWA, an organisation that supports over 30,000 people with functional disabilities on a weekly basis. We hope to continue our partnership with the IWA to promote inclusivity and greater equity in our workplaces and society at large. “Finally, due to ongoing Covid-19 considerations, we made a decision to host this year’s Liberty Race virtually, but we intend to stage our 2022 Liberty Race in person. Our long-term ambition is to replicate the success of our sister Liberty races in Madrid and Lisbon by growing the event into a much-anticipated fixture in the Irish sporting and running calendar.”

Comment from Joanne Ryan, Corporate & Trusts Manager with Irish Wheelchair Association:

“We are so grateful for this incredible support from Liberty as we come to the end of another very challenging year. The Liberty Race was a fantastic example of inclusion and was enjoyed by IWA members and staff across the country. We are looking towards 2022 with a great amount of optimism and funds raised through this event will go a long way to supporting our work across 58 communities in Ireland. “We hope that next year we will fully reopen our doors and continue to provide our wide range of services including training, member transport, school leaver programmes, social outings and sporting activities, as well as taking our advocacy work to new heights as we continue to promote independence and equality for people with disabilities. Thank you to everyone who took part in the Liberty Race.”