11 Race Across the World Contestants Join 10km Manchester Run for Sam Gardiner Tribute
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 16
11 Race Across the World Contestants Join 10km Manchester Run for Sam Gardiner Tribute
4 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 16
Eleven Race Across the World contestants from every BBC series will run the Great Manchester Run on 31 May to honor former contestant Sam Gardiner and raise money for The Christie Charity.
Sam, 24, died on 26 May 2025 after his car left the A34 near Manchester and rolled; the run marks nearly a year since his death.
Current series pairs Katie and Harrison and Jo and Kush are joining former contestants including series-two winner Emon Choudhury, Trish and Cathie, Stephen and Viv, and Darron Speck.
More than £28,000 was raised in the weeks after Sam's death for people affected by fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, with his adoptive mother Jo Gardiner set to support runners at the 10km event.
Emon said cancer had touched every member of the group, framing the tribute run as a shared effort to turn Sam's legacy into support for families facing the disease.
Why did Sam Gardiner's tribute shift its charity focus from his personal condition to a cause affecting the entire group?
Beyond this run, how is a reality TV star's tragic tyre accident being turned into a lasting road safety legacy?