Horiya! Freedom!
“Horiya! Freedom! Eid Mubarak!”
Alaa shouts and throws his arm up. Across the valley, snow-covered mountain peaks are framed by the bluest sky, and 1,000 metres below, Bourg d’Oisans nestles at the foot of Alpe d’Huez.
“Chris — when we met six years ago, you said that one day we would cycle up Alpe d’Huez together. That one day I would know what this freedom means.”
Alaa is the founder of the Gaza Sunbirds. He lost his right leg to an Israeli sniper in May 2018. The fragmentation bullet caused so much damage that, despite multiple surgeries, they could not save his leg.
We first met when we hosted him for a webinar, Cycling Under Siege, in November 2020. COVID was in full flow in the UK, while Gaza had still had no cases — the Israeli blockade was so pervasive that even the virus hadn’t crossed it.
“Chris — when we met six years ago, you said that one day we would cycle up Alpe d’Huez together. That one day I would know what this freedom means.” Alaa al-Dali
Alaa had never left Gaza, never cycled more than 20 miles from home or climbed more than 100 metres. The chances of that changing seemed remote. But six years and a genocide later, we are cycling together up Alpe d’Huez, alongside 18 other riders chaperoning the one and only Anne Jones — our 84-year-old flying granny.
This May, Anne completed the third of her three awe-inspiring bike rides, conquering the three most iconic climbs of the Tour de France. Mont Ventoux in 2024 — in the worst of weather. The mighty Tourmalet in 2025 — where she was greeted at the summit by 1,000 partying Dutch cyclists. And Alpe d’Huez in 2026 — just two months before the Tour rides up it twice in two days.
Top: Anne M Jones cycling the Alpe d’Huez for the Gaza Sunbirds and Amos Trust
Middle: Hydrating on the way up the mountain
Bottom: The Gaza Sunbirds and Anne at the summit
Anne has raised over £75,000 through these three rides for the Sunbirds and for our work with children in Gaza. But more than the money, she has inspired countless people with her determination, her dedication and her refusal to listen to those who suggested that each ride was profoundly unwise.
This was Alaa’s first mountain ride. He had no idea what to expect. He had made a detour to Grenoble that morning to perform prayers for Eid al-Adha. The freedom and sense of peace he was experiencing are hard to put into words — but they are inherently understood by those who ride the high mountains. It is shaped by vast vistas, staggering views, exhausting climbs and exhilarating descents, and it holds within it the hopes and dreams we carry for Palestine, and especially for Gaza.
Anne has raised over £75,000 through these three rides for the Sunbirds and for our work with children in Gaza.
Cycling here with Alaa and Anne was to see our hopes and dreams exceed their promise.
It was to see the Sunbirds — who have faced so many barriers — show what incredible athletes and what remarkable people they are. It was to see Anne throwing off the years and taking her place on the final podium. And it was to know that their achievements far outstrip whatever record Pogačar sets for climbing Alpe d’Huez in this year’s Tour.
