77-YEAR old Kath Lyons from Glusburn will be the oldest amongst a record 32 women taking part in a 280-mile cycle ride this summer from Yorkshire to London in memory of MP Jo Cox who was murdered seven years ago while in her constituency.

It will be the largest number of women ever to take part in the annual Jo Cox Way ride.

Now in its eighth year, 81 cyclists of all ages and abilities are due to set off on July 26 from the Princess Mary Stadium in Cleckheaton, arriving in London four days later on Sunday July 30.

The ride aims to keep the former Batley and Spen MP’s legacy alive by bringing communities together and supporting causes that were important to her.

It will be the second time Kath, who only took up cycling at the age of 67, and says its better than any 'happy pill' has taken part. Last year, she was congratulated at the finish line by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and Jo’s mum Jean Leadbeater.

Kath said: "I started (cycling) to try to get myself fitter; it beats any happy pill. I enjoyed The Jo Cox Way so much last year; it was a tough challenge but they couldn’t be more supportive."

In the UK, three times more men than women are members of cycling clubs, and twice as many men cycle each week compared to women.

Kim Leadbeater MP, who was elected to represent her sister’s old constituency in 2021 and has been involved in every Jo Cox Way ride, said cycling was not just for middle-aged men. “Cycling has enormous physical and mental health benefits, and also helps combat loneliness and isolation; causes Jo was passionate about," she said.

"It isn’t just for middle aged men in Lycra- it’s for everyone. The Jo Cox Way ride is a great chance to meet and talk to people from different backgrounds, and it’s brilliant that it’s more popular than ever, with cyclists joining together yet again to celebrate the fact that we have ‘far more in common than that which divides us’ – as Jo said in her maiden speech in Parliament.”

The Jo Cox Way was started in 2016 by North Yorkshire businessman and keen cyclist Sarfraz Mian BEM, just a few weeks after Jo was killed. She was shot and stabbed several times in Birstall, West Yorkshire, where she had been due to hold a surgery.

The Jo Cox Way raises funds for The Jo Cox Foundation. Anyone wishing to donate should visit: www.justgiving.com/campaign/jocoxway2023. Although all the places on this year’s ride are now taken, cyclists can take part virtually by pledging miles, using the link; www.thejocoxway.org.uk/pledge