UK telecoms rivals swap fibre for the fast lane at Zen charity karting event

Engines were in overdrive (electric motors actually) on 19 March as Zen and some of the UK’s leading full fibre providers took to the track to settle the question on everyone’s lips – who’s the fastest?

No hostilities of course. This was all for a good cause as 20 racers representing Openreach, Virgin Media O2, CityFibre, Netomnia, Freedom Fibre, MS3 Networks, Gigaclear, BT Wholesale, Sky Wholesale, and of course Zen engaged in a battle of skill and determination. And the beneficiaries were two local causes very close to our hearts.

Together, we raised an amazing £23,000 for Springhill Hospice and WHAG, funds that will go a long way to supporting the important work they do.

This “Wacky Races” event took place in central Manchester at Team Karting – a fitting venue in the heart of the North West for friendly rivalries to take their course.

And the winners? That would be MS3 Networks, closely followed by Zen and Netomnia. But really, every single person who took part on the day has our immense gratitude.

We love it when apparent rivals can come together to support such a good cause.

As Zen’s strategy director David Barber (who finished runner-up by the way) said: “It’s fantastic to see so many of our industry peers and suppliers in one room. We all compete hard to deliver the best service to customers, but we share a common goal: building a better, faster, and more connected UK. Today was about celebrating that shared mission, strengthening our partnerships, and most importantly, raising a fantastic amount of money for two brilliant causes.”

Thanks to everyone who took part to help raise such a large amount of money. The only question remaining now is, how do we top it next year?