Malvern College is thrilled to celebrate the incredible achievement of our former pupil, Lara Vafiadis, who has successfully rowed solo across the Atlantic as part of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. Lara has spent the last 98 days, 22 hours and 22 minutes at sea, facing immense challenges throughout her epic journey.
Lara conveniently timed her arrival to coincide with Tuesday’s mid-morning break, allowing 50 girls from her old boarding house (No. 8) to tune in to the live feed and witness her crossing the finish line in Antigua.
The applause and cheers from our school community were deafening, as we watched Lara’s family and friends congratulate the exhausted rower who has raised tens of thousands of pounds for three different charities.
Lara visited Malvern College to give a motivational talk to our pupils before she embarked on her rowing adventure back in December, and we have followed her progress avidly, sending good wishes on social media and encouraging others to support her fundraising efforts.
Today, we are delighted to heap high praise on Lara, who was supported in the challenge by the Malvernian Society. Suzy Leeke, Head of Alumni Engagement for the Malvernian Society, said they could not be more proud of Lara and all that she had achieved.
Our Headmaster, Mr Keith Metcalfe, added his congratulations, saying that Lara embodied the Malvernian ethos, which encourages young people to take on tough physical challenges to promote independent learning and gain confidence.
We are extremely proud of Lara and grateful for the inspiration she has given our pupils. We look forward to her return to Malvern College to give a second talk on how her Atlantic Challenge has gone, and we continue to support her charitable efforts through This Girl Rows.
Any further donations can be made at https://www.thisgirlrows.com.