The 554km Nelson Mandela Legacy Ride4Hope was launched with smiles, joyous laughter and cheering at the Nelson Mandela Foundation headquarters in Johannesburg this week.

The second annual Ride4Hope event is mandated by the Nelson Mandela Foundation to mark the centenary commemoration of South Africa’s first democratically elected president.

Mandela, who died in 2013 at the age 95, had championed numerous charitable initiatives since his release from Robben Island in 1990 and Ride4Hope will again put charitable causes at the forefront of the event.

Luthando Kaka, the event director at Legacy Ride4Hope, is resolute that this year’s event could raise over R1m that will be donated to various communities.