July 09, 2019 (Ottawa, ON) – To those of you who did not see the initial message [June 13th] it’s with much regret that GranFondoOttawa is being cancelled this year. On April 12th, I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Colo-rectal Cancer.
Non-stop assessments since April 12th revealed Stage 3 Colo-Rectal Cancer with swollen lymph nodes requiring immediate Radiation and Chemotherapy, 6-8 weeks of recovery, further assessment, Surgery and likely more Chemo after Surgery.
The Team of Cancer “specialists” advised to adjust my lifestyle and diet, reduce work and avoid stress related tasks – allowing treatments to effectively reduce the tumor to ease symptoms/problems and increase the chance of a successful surgery and timely recovery.
It’s been a very difficult few weeks however I am done the Chemo/Rad and battling through the rad burns and managing the pain.
This decision was very difficult however it is for the best as I don’t want to deliver an event without being able to put 100% in to it.
The decision was made alongside my Team of Doctors, family & close friends + key stakeholders including the Alzheimer’s Society who all advised that I focus on battling my Cancer, reassess the event and work to bring GFO back in 2020, better than ever.
We are processing refunds as advised.
Should you prefer to allocate your registration fees to our 2020 event, registration will be transferred and your 2019 entry fee will be honored with no price increase.
If you’d like to donate all or a portion of your entry fees to A) the Alzheimer’s Society or B) The Ottawa Hospital Foundation, links and tax receipts will be provided + GFO will send you a Biemme Event jersey from a previous years’ ride [minimum Net of tax/fee donation of $100.00 is required to qualify for a jersey w/shipping].
Please email admin@gfottawa.org to inform of your decision.
To inspire me to battle through and conquer Cancer and in appreciation of the amazing support and excellent care received to date from The Ottawa Hospital and the Cancer Assessment Center, my goal is to participate in The Ride on September 8th and help raise funds and awareness of what they do.
If you’d like to donate to TOH in support of Cancer Research or join our Team, aptly named Friends of GranFondoOttawa Cycling Club, please email greg@gfottawa.org for details.
So far we’ve raised more than $15,000.00 with 11 riders joining our Team, looking to have 20 riders raise $25,000.00
All Friends of GranFondoOttawaCyclingClub members will receive a Biemme kit [jersey/bins/socks] and a gift bag loaded with product from sponsors such as Clif Bar, DZ Nuts and Stella Azzura.
Please accept a sincere apology for the inconvenience/delay and all the best in your 2019 ride season.
N.B. – Not to preach however to those of us who ignore symptoms, manage with pain and discomfort, skip annual physicals and think an illness like Cancer cannot impact you because you are strong, fit, healthy, eat well and exercise – please do yourself and your family a favor – think again and don’t take chances – it is your life and early detection makes a huge difference.
Yours truly,
Greg Capello
For more information visit here or the Gran Fondo Ottawa website here.