Solo Paddle From Darwin to Timor Leste for charity

In the later months of 2002 Luke Gosling began raising money for a number of projects and charities working to help the Timorese. To raise some initial funds and to heighten awareness of the plight of women and children in East Timor in the Australian community, Luke arranged for concerts in inner-city town halls

in Sydney and Melbourne using donated sponsored refreshments, bands and singers of note, such as Paul Kelly. This was the easy part as Luke began to prepare himself physically for a challenge that would make most people reconsider their own sanity.

Luke asked for sponsors to help assist with the bold endeavour that would see him paddle and sail from the top of Australia (Darwin) to the south coast of Timor in a sea kayak and support yacht. Upon reaching the coast he would then ride a mountain bike over the rugged tropical mountains to the

capital, Dili. All the time cognizant of the pressure to arrive in Dili before his younger brother Dan, who was simultaneously running a marathon a day for 7 days from the eastern tip of the island to the Capital. Luke arrived in Dili on the 20th May 2003, the first anniversary of the Restoration of Independence day for East Timor. Luke had completed the journey on a shoestring budget and was therefore able to donate $7,000 worth of maternal and baby equipment to the National Hospital in Dili, provide $2,750 for the restoration of "The Balibo Flag House" (which includes a memorial to the five Australian journalists that were killed in 1975) and make a further donation of $5,000 to the Alola Foundation. The first lady of Timor Leste, Kirsty Sword Gusmao is the Chairwoman of the Alola Foundation that proactively works to improve the lives of East Timorese women.

An outstanding display of sportsmanship that had a significant impact on the people of Timor.