FEED THE BARRIOS
FEED THE BARRIOS
FEED THE BARRIOS
FEED THE BARRIOS
ABOUT SAM
G’day my name is Sam!
Due to a hiccup in my academic career, I can't start my master's degree in September 2021, meaning I am forced to take gap year. During this year I will raise €150.000 for Fundacíon caminos and Feed the Barrios by cycling from Maastricht (Netherlands) to Hong-Kong.
I was born and raised in Maastricht, a city in the south of the Netherlands. After finishing my bachelor degree in biomedical sciences at Maastricht University I planned to do a master's degree in exercise sciences at the University of Auckland (New Zealand). In order to afford going to Auckland I am currently working for Matisse Pharmaceuticals where I am part of the research and development team that is trying to make a life saving drug against septic shock (blood poisoning).
But due to some administrative issues the course I intended to do takes two years rather than one which I cannot afford even if I work an extra year.
My plan B master's degree was Nutrition at the University of Copenhagen but, I found out too late that the master's in Auckland was not going to be possible and missed the application deadline for Copenhagen.
Now my plans for the master's degree are on hold until the academic year starting in September 2022. Between then and August 2021 I will raise money for Fundacíon caminos and Feed the Barrios.
Other than studying and working I spend my time playing sports, travelling and hanging out with mates. Through the years I have practiced many sports with the main ones being Judo, windsurfing, skateboarding, football and quite important for a trip like this cycling. I have been playing football at the Geertruidse boys since I was about six years old and still play and coach one of the youth teams every week. By being Dutch cycling is embedded in my DNA. Speed cycling, mountain biking, down-hilling and commuting it is all done by bike and allows me to clear my head and simultaneously train for this big journey.
Every summer since 2016 I go to Camp Moosilauke in New Hampshire (USA) where I teach windsurfing and kayaking. After camp I take some time to travel and explore new places and cultures. These travels have among others taken me to the West coast of the USA, Malawi, Japan, the Philippines and Peru so I have some experience abroad that will be helpful when being on the road.
All together I may not have loads of experience with trekking on a bicycle but I have experience in the individual components to make this 15.000 km cycle a big success.
ABOUT MAX
Hi all, my name is Max. After finishing my masters in operations management and logistics at the Technical University of Eindhoven I will be joining Sam on his trip to Hong Kong. Sam and I go way back, our first trip being to Malawi to do voluntary work. In the following years we travelled America, Europe and Japan.
When Sam asked me to join him on this trip to raise money for Feed the Barrios, I immediately wanted to join him. We have talked about a long distance cycling trip for many years, and to do it for a good cause makes it even more appealing.
During the trip I will mostly try to keep Sam in check, because he can get a little... excited at times. I have some experience cyling in the mountains, but I will need to do a lot of training beforehand because I havent cycled in a while. Nowadays I go to the gym and run every now and then, so getting in form for this challenge should not be a problem.
Sam and Max at the top of mount Fuji, watching the sunrise
ABOUT MEES
Hey! I’m Mees Liedekerken and since November 2019 I’ve been living in Colombia. After studying Criminology (Bsc) and being part of the student association’s board and faculty council I decided to explore a different part of the world while learning Spanish.
The beauty of Colombia and it’s people made me fall in love. Their resilience after decades of armed conflicts, poverty and lack of opportunities is admirable.
When the pandemic happened the majority of Colombians were put out of work because of restrictive measures because they work informal, street jobs.
Focusing on transparency and efficiency, we founded a humanitarian crisis project that over the course of a year has delivered 160,000 meals to the beautiful people of Medellín affected by the covid-crisis; Feed the Barrios.
I’ve known Sam since primary school, I know he is able to create ambitious ideas in his mind and accomplish them in real life. I feel honored to be connected to his journey.
