Edinburgh Leonardo employees help smash ‘race to space’ exercise target

Edinburgh employees working at aerospace engineering firm Leonardo have helped smash an international target to clock up a combined distance of 46,000 kilometres through exercise - the approximate distance from Earth to a satellite constellation and back again.

Leonardo, which employs more than 2,000 people at its site at Crewe Toll in Edinburgh took part in a global ‘race to space’ initiative which asked them to prioritise health and wellbeing, an increasingly important theme due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

More than 1,500 participants - from Edinburgh and sites in 11 other countries where the firm is based - cycled, ran, climbed and swam their way to almost double the target distance, achieving a global total of more than 88,000 kilometres.

The target distance of 46,000 km is the approximate distance from Earth to the Galileo Satellite Constellation and back. Leonardo provides technology for the global satellite navigation systems for the Galileo satellite programme in collaboration with the European Space Agency.

Participant Malcolm Burke, chief engineer at Leonardo in Edinburgh.

Tracking employees’ progress on exercise app Strava made it possible to assemble statistics that attested to all participants’ efforts.

Employees completed 4,946 activities over 5,658 hours and 55 minutes, equivalent to a total of eight months. The elevation climbed was 827,005m, equal to climbing Mount Everest 93 times and 2,152,740 calories were burned, equivalent to 10,604 slices of rich indulgent chocolate cake.

Participant Malcolm Burke, chief engineer at Leonardo in Edinburgh, said: “I decided to chip into the race to space challenge using my commuter miles during the week, with longer cycles taking in some of our local landmarks to add a few more miles to our total. It was good to see people from all our sites cycling, running or walking to meet the challenge.”

Jo Khan, programme manager added: “The challenge was also a reminder to appreciate the fitness I have and to make time for a better work life balance. It was great to join with other Leonardo people around the world and it really felt like a fantastic team effort.”

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