Team Cycling for the Answer to Cancer

Sixty employees from the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) came together on Thursday, June 21 at SWERVE Fitness Midtown in New York City for the “Pedal to the Medal: CRI Cycling Challenge,” a team-based studio cycling fundraiser to benefit the Cancer Research Institute (CRI). 

Cyclists were split into 3 teams: Team Red, Team Green, and Team Blue. Team Red was led by Tricia Hazelwood, managing director and head of structured products of MUFG Securities Americas; Team Green was led by Bill Mansfield, president and chief executive officer of MUFG Securities Americas; and Team Blue was led by Geoffrey Coley, CRI board member and international business head of MUFG Securities Holdings Co., Ltd. Geoffrey is the great-nephew of CRI’s founder, Helen Coley Nauts, and the great-grandson of Dr. William B. Coley, now recognized as the “Father of Cancer Immunotherapy.” Each team captain helped recruit MUFG employees to fundraise and cycle for CRI.  

Motivated by friendly competition between teams and comradery among teammates, cyclists sweated through an intense 45-minute class, enduring sprints, hills, and upper body exercises designed for a full-body workout. Progress was tracked through a “SWERVE Score,” which was shown on scoreboards in the studio for teams to compare themselves against their competition. Each team’s SWERVE Score was measured by individual member’s power outage, based on their bike’s level of resistance combined with how quickly the individual cycles. Team members’ power outages were averaged to produce the overall team SWERVE Score. 

After close competition, the results were in: Team Red ended the challenge with the highest SWERVE Score with a total of 599, with Team Green placing second with an impressive score of 522 and Team Blue coming in close with a score of 467. For top individual SWERVE scores, Bill Mansfield of Team Green scored 1,018, Jean Baptiste-Arrighi of Team Green scored 996, and Rocky Progano of Team Red scored 868. We commend each team for their great accomplishments! 

During the reception following the workout, MUFG cyclists were able to unwind and socialize over cold beers and light bites. CRI’s chief executive officer and director of scientific affairs, Dr. Jill O’Donnell-Tormey, made remarks along with Geoff Coley congratulating the teams and recognizing the importance of each person’s efforts to support cancer immunotherapy research.

From left to right: Bill Mansfield, Jill O'Donnell-Tormey, Tricia Hazelwood, Geoffrey Coley, and Jack Griffin

We are delighted to announce that the teams have collectively raised over $16,000 in vital funds for cancer immunotherapy research. Team fundraising will be generously matched by MUFG up to $3,000 per team. CRI would like to thank the MUFG cyclists for fundraising and participating in the event. Each team should be proud of their contributions to a future immune to cancer!