Graham McKittrick emerged the overall winner of this year’s Rhino Charge held in Torosei,Kajiado County.
McKittrick, who drove car number 5 and a regular in the competition, covered the tough 27km new course to claim his fifth Rhino charge title.
Bundu Fundi team,car no.38 led by Sean Avery and Team Huzi (Car No. 33) led by Jeremy Holley finished in second and third positions respectively.
“Last year, we finished in third place, and I am happy that this year we have secured first place. This marks our fifth win overall since we began participating in the challenge as a family 35 years ago. Personally, I started participating in the challenge at the age of 15, and the journey has been incredible, raising funds to support our ecosystem and biodiversity. This event is very important to us, and we remain committed to participating and supporting this cause.” Said Graham McKittrick.
This year’s event raised the highest amount of money ever with a total of Ksh.329 Million being raised.
Veteran driver Adil Khawaja of Car No. 44 (AK44) emerged as the top fundraiser for the second year in a row, raising KES 175 million. Last year, Mr. Khawaja, was also the top fundraiser with KES.60 million.
“My sincere thanks goes to all the sponsors and friends who came on board to support our team in raising this remarkable amount of KES 175 million, which certainly was not an easy feat. We are pleased with the contributions and involvement in the cause of supporting environmental conservation. It is high time we started training our young people to get involved in this initiative so that they can carry it forward as we age. We need to establish mentorship programs that will empower them with knowledge about the importance of environmental conservation and ecosystems, and train them on how to effectively fundraise for this cause.” Said Adil Khawaja.
This year’s Rhino Charge drew 54 entries with six making their debut in the competition.
Some of the new entrants include: Pumba Patrol (Car No. 17), The Crusaders (Car No. 45), Geco Tribe Chargers (Car No. 46), Zambarau Heels on Wheels (Car No. 50), and two teams from the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK 58 and BATUK 59).
Participants who were outstanding in several categories were recognized for their efforts.
The Modified Class Category was claimed by Car No. 40 (Roving Rogues) entered by Peter Francombe whereas the unmodified category was claimed by Car No.9 (Gumtree 4 x 4) led by John Bowden who retained his title.
Gauntlet category was claimed by Frying Squad – Car No. 9 led by Ravi Patel.
Tiger Line 1 category was won by Car No. 22 (The Smiling Shenzis) led by Gray Cullen, with Car No. 48 (Team 48) emerging the winner of the Tiger Line 2 Category. Victor Ludom Award went to Adil Khawaja of Car No.44
“We appreciate the efforts of our sponsors and participants for making this year’s Rhino Charge a success. We are truly impressed by the substantial funds raised this year, totaling over KES 325 million, the highest amount ever since we launched this event 35 years ago. One of our key objectives is to support the community, and this year, we are donating KES 10 million to the Torosei community program, including the construction of a secondary school in this area.” Said Christian Lambrechts, Executive Director of Rhino Ark.
The organisers of the event received support from several corporates key among them Safaricom who committed Ksh.15 Million and also sponsored Adil Khawaja,the winner of the 2024 edition.
