37,494

km logged

Raised so far

$79,435

Our goal

$100,000

Sign up

Ride

Get riding and track your kms from February until July to reach your training goal.

Fundraise

Share your fundraising page on social media and start to raise funds to help find a cure for Desmoid Fibromatosis.

Get connected, track your progress and join our community of awesome sponsors.

Sign up, train and fundraise for a chance to win some amazing prizes from our valued sponsors. We have fun incentives and fundraising prizes for you this year... Check out our Prizes page for more info.

Athina's Story

My name is Athina Merckx and in February 2019 I noticed some pain in the back of my right knee after swim practice one day. The following month doctors diagnosed me with Desmoid Fibromatosis.

About Desmoid Tumours

Desmoid-type fibromatosis affects approximately 2 to 4 people in 1 million each year. The tendency for recurrence with surgery makes the treatment of these rare soft tissue tumours challenging.

About DFC

The Desmoid Tumour Foundation of Canada (DFC) is the official Canadian charity for desmoid research. In the past three years, the DFC has donated more than $250,000 toward investigating new and effective therapies.

Update on Funds Raised in 2022

Update on funds raised by Athina's Ride for Desmoid Foundation of Canada(DFC), that funded research this year. Thanks to your support, the DFC committed $159,000 across 4 different grants, 3 of which are Canadian and 1 from Belgium.

We are so pleased by the increasing global interest in desmoid tumour research and are especially proud to see such leadership coming from Canadian researchers!

This, of course, would not have been possible without your generosity and continued support of DFC, through events like Athina's Ride and annual giving. Thank you for making a difference in the lives of desmoid patients. This research takes us a step closer towards finding better treatments and ultimately, a cure for desmoid tumours.

Ron Mills just donated $106
Leslie Wynn just donated $1,815
Jeannie just donated $515
Bill Curtis just donated $224.72
Indira Somaia just donated $53
Meredith Campbell just donated $117.66
Jane Reilly just donated $53
Mike, Amanda and Kennedy just donated $53
Anonymous just donated $2,015
The Pond just donated $212
Jacquie Fell just donated $53
Tony and Linda Goodrow just donated $100
Peter & Anna Narduzzi just donated $100
Peter & Anna Narduzzi just donated $100
Peter & Anna Narduzzi just donated $100
Steve and Rosemary Marsh just donated $515
Michael& Carolyn just donated $515
Michael & Carolyn just donated $515
Michael & Carolyn just donated $515
J Douglas Hanna just donated $250

About Athina's Ride

Athina's Ride is a virtual cycling event that starts with training rides on February 15th and culminates on July 9th & 10th with an epic ride where you can achieve the goal you set for yourself. Ride by yourself, with some friends or along with the Okanagan Granfondo ride. You can ride indoors on a trainer or outdoors (and manually log it, or use platforms like Strava to automatically upload your rides). You'll sign up, choose your distance, and start training.

Create an account, log your training distances, and then participate on Ride Weekend in one of four distances. By logging your distances and fundraising, you'll enter to win some awesome prizes. Meanwhile, 100% of the proceeds raised through fundraising will benefit the Desmoid Tumour Foundation of Canada.