Giant Strides in Caring

Montgomerie harnesses the power of sport to raise money for a charity that is so close to his own heart.

by Peter Sharkey, Business of Sport - The Press & Journal.

At 7.45am on Monday the 2nd of November, Scotland's Colin Montgomerie, one of Britain's most successful golfers, will join several dozen other hardy souls at the obelisk at Milngavie - the traditional starting point for walking the West Highland Way.

The 152km route to Fort William passes through spectacular scenic glens and hills. It runs parallel to Loch Lomond, skirts Glen Cue and, as walkers approach the walk's impressive finale, so Ben Nevis dominates the landscape - reminding walkers that the their travails are almost over and that their blisters, aches and pains can be attended to.

Having returned from golf's world match-play championship in Spain, Montgomerie, Europe's Ryder Cup captain, will stride out purposefully towards Mugdock Castle and the western flank of the Campsie hills in aid of the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation, the charity founded in memory of his mother who died of lung cancer in 1991.

The foundation was established with the intention of raising funds to provide practical and emotional support for those affected by cancer. Its initial focus has been in the West of Scotland, an area which suffers from some of the highest lung cancer rates in the world.

The foundation's first major funding project is the Elizabeth Montgomerie Building in Lanarkshire, developed with Maggie's Cancer Caring centres, a sanctuary where cancer sufferers and their families can go for advice as well as emotional and psychological support.

Monty is oft-depicted as a curmudgeon, but this work shows a side of him that people rarely see or hear about. Among our highest-profile sportsmen and women, he is not alone. Not surprisingly then, the several dozen walkers will be joined en route to Fort William by Scotland manager George Burley, rugby great Scott Hastings and his iconic all-action brother, Gavin.

More than movie stars, singers, musicians or our elected politicians, the involvement of sporting legends in a charitable event virtually guarantees its success, a fact which further proves sport's unique role in society. Whenever we see well-known sportsmen and women giving of their free time and doing something good and positive, it is natural for us to want to emulate them. Mindful of past performances inside the sporting arena, their subsequent collective deeds act as an inspiration on an individual and, in this instance, corporate level.

Educated initially at Peterhead Academy and a former Aberdeenshire county volleyball player, Robert Cook is now chief executive of the Hotel du Vin group. Still a keen runner and six-handicap golfer, Cook was inspired when listening to Montgomerie at a presentation given by the Ryder Skipper at Cook's company's Glasgow hotel.

Cook said: "Colin gave a compelling talk about his foundation and how the West of Scotland in particular is plagued by the incidence of lung cancer. Afterwards, the Maggie's Centre chief executive got up to speak and I thought, 'I know that girl'. It turned out to be a lady I attended school with in Peterhead more than 25 years earlier."

Cook was hooked and the following day, when Monty called to thank him for his hospitality, asked whether Hotel du Vin could become involved with the foundation.

Cook added: "I told Monty we wanted to adopt a Scottish charitable cause, not just make a contribution, and he was delighted at the prospect of us getting involved. He agreed and we immediately swung into action, staging fashion shows, asking our guests to contribute £1 whenever they stayed a night in one of our hotels and raising funds in a variety of different ways.

It's amazing how quickly money begins to accumulate when you get several concurrent initiatives under way. "However, we decided that if we were going to reach our target figure of £100,000, we needed a big push, hence the five-day hike along the West Highland Way." Cook is not going alone. At least one company board member and 30-odd other senior personnel are joining him, which begs the question: how, in a deep recession, can a business justify such a commitment to what some people would consider a jolly?

Cook's answer is both illuminating and thought-provoking. He said: "Let's put life into perspective for a moment. Yes, economic conditions are incredibly tough and, granted, businesses are not making as much money as they did say, two or three years ago. But how do these factors compare with having a terminal illness? If you visit a Maggie's Centre, you're almost compelled to do something because you appreciate just how lucky you are.

"We're not setting out to break any world records between Milngavie and Fort William, but perhaps demonstrate that businesses and sports are clearly capable of mixing for the common good." Sports of every description are important to any society. They influence our actions, dress, vocabulary, customs and opinions. Anthropologists maintain that sport is capable of driving everything from a community's economic engine to enhancing social identity and pride.

Montgomerie admits he will be relying on his golfing fitness to help him through next Monday.

Monty said: "I'm in Spain playing this week and am flying to Cairo next Tuesday so unfortunately I will not be able to do the whole five days.

"However, I will be doing the first day, which is a total of 21 miles, with the team from Hotel du Vin. I haven't trained specifically for this, but as I walk an average of seven miles a day I am confident that I will not have too much trouble completing the distance.

"I think that anyone who has been lucky enough to have achieved success and a level of public profile has a duty to give something back.

"This is one of the main reasons why I set up the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation. It is something that is very close to my heart, as my mother died of the disease.

"There are so many people who are supporting us and I am so grateful to them all. I am delighted that I can perhaps, in some small way, encourage people to get involved in supporting this and other good causes."

Monty is delighted he will be able to count on the support of several prominent sporting celebrities next week and has set his fundraising sights high.

He said: "I have made a number of my fellow golf professionals and other people involved in professional sport aware of the tremendous effort that the staff of Hotel du Vin are making on behalf of the foundation. I am extremely grateful to George Burleyand to Gavin and Scott Hastings who are all doing a day of the walk.

"I know a number of other people were very keen to do it, but their schedules would not allow it. But maybe by next year, we could have even more high-profile sports people joining us. I would love this to become an annual event.

"We're planning a number of other events next year including dinners in Europe, something in London as well as a number of activities around the 2010 Ryder Cup. Our ultimate aim is to raise £3 million to support people affected by cancer. The first project we're undertaking is to build the Elizabeth Montgomerie Building at Monklands Hospital in Lanarkshire, which has some of the highest cancer rates in the world."

In August, Press and Journal columnist Stephen Gallacher presented a cheque for £10,000 to the foundation on behalf of the newspaper.