Man from Rugby rows his way to victory to help mental health charity

Sunim Koria, 36, completed the fundraiser in under four hours on a rowing machine with just seconds to help raise money for Mind, on behalf of his employer Lantra.

He said: “The row itself was definitely one of the most taxing activities I have ever undertaken, and 12 weeks of intense training truly paid off.

“I lost all mental focus and consistency after 30 kilometres, but managed to struggle my way to the end in the nick of time, with the help of a lot of Lucozade!”

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Sunim lost a lot of his freelancing work as a bass player.

“I became more serious about rowing over the first lockdown in March, possibly as a way to deal with my frustration and fill the void the lack of music work left,” he added.

“Now I’ve ended up achieving a number of goals, such as rowing over 2 million metres since March, getting my 5,000 metre time to below 20 minutes and rowing a full marathon.”

He said has raised more than £2,000 so far.

Sunim, who now lives in Lutterworth, said: “Indoor rowing has helped improve my wellbeing considerably and so coupling this activity with a fundraising event for an important mental health charity went hand in hand. Mind have been incredibly resourceful to my employer - Lantra - over the years, lending their support for a number of wellbeing event days and mental health awareness training.”

To support Sunim, visit uk.virginmoneygiving.com/SunimKoria