The 1333 Bikeathon:

Cycling to inspire

'Out of the Shadows', the 1333 Bikeathon, a 13-day cycling journey cover 1333 kilometres around the island got underway on August 29 with a significant number of cyclists wheeling off from Independence Square.

The 13-day journey sees the cyclist covering an average distance of 100 kilometres each day, on a route that took them from Colombo to Kurunegala on day one and Jaffna day 5. They will be cycling from Mahiyanganaya to Monaragala today (September 6) which is day 9, and returning to Colombo via Bentota on September 10, which is World Suicide Prevention Day 2015.

There have been several events to welcome the riders and create awareness in each of the destination towns throughout the ride.

The purpose of 1333 Bikeathon 'Out of the Shadows' is to create national awareness of CCCline's 1333 toll free number in Sri Lanka aimed at preventing suicide in Sri Lanka and raising funds to sustain and expand its operations.

Kumar Sangakkara, ambassador of CCCline 1333 was expected to join the first leg of the ride in Sri Lanka.

Pix Susantha Wijegunasekera