'It is possible to live well and lead a happy life alongside this devastating diagnosis' – Chris Hoy’s Tour de 4 charity ride raises more than £2m

Sir Chris Hoy’s inaugural Tour de 4 charity ride raised more than double its £1 million fundraising target for UK cancer charities.

The event ran in Glasgow on Sunday, and was founded by the six-time Olympic champion in response to his stage four cancer diagnosis last year.

Following the ride, Hoy and his wife Sarra posed with a giant cheque bearing the fundraising total of £2,135,406. “It’s been a truly extraordinary day. I have run out of words,” Hoy wrote on Instagram.

The money will be shared by five cancer charities: Breast Cancer Now, Cancer Research UK, Macmillan, Maggie’s and Prostate Cancer UK.

More than 5,000 participants joined the Tour de 4, choosing from three routes, all starting and finishing at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome: 92km (57 miles), 60km (37 miles) or a family-friendly one-kilometre option.

Hoy, who has prostate cancer, rode in the event himself, alongside fellow cycling stars Mark Cavendish, Jason Kenny, Sarah Storey and Dani Rowe, as well as the tennis player Andy Murray. The event’s focus, however, was on the many participants living with stage four cancer who took part.

Speaking ahead of the Tour de 4, Hoy said he wanted to “shine a spotlight on what a stage four cancer diagnosis can look like and demonstrate that it is possible to live well and lead a happy life alongside this devastating diagnosis”.

“This is not about being the fastest,” he told participants. “It’s about preparation, about showing up, riding your way and being part of something bigger than all of us.”

Hoy first found out about his cancer diagnosis in September 2023, when a scan revealed a pain in his shoulder to be a tumour. Further scans then found cancer in his prostate, and doctors told him he had two to four years left to live.

“It completely turned my world upside down. In those first few weeks, you are desperately trying to find some positivity and that was when I had this vision for the Tour de 4,” the Scot told the press in Glasgow ahead of Sunday’s charity ride.

Following Hoy’s announcement in October that his cancer is incurable, prostate cancer charities have witnessed a spike in men seeking information about the disease.

Around 12,000 men die from prostate cancer every year in the UK, according to Prostate Cancer UK. Further information and support can be found on the charity’s website.