Nervous princess prepares to add Royal ascent to Alpine charity challenge

A team of six friends including Princess Beatrice have said they are feeling nervous but excited as they prepare to climb the highest mountain in western Europe.

The young royal will take on Mont Blanc in the Alps along with Holly and Sam Branson, Isabella Calthorpe, Sam Richardson and Philip Nevin as they launch the Big Change Charitable Trust.

Virgin tycoon Sir Richard Branson, father of Holly and Sam, is also joining the group as a special guest as they attempt to reach the sought-after summit that towers nearly 4,810 metres (15,781ft) above sea level.

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The group first came together in 2010 to raise money for a variety of charitable projects when, as a team of 34 people all dressed in bright green tutus, they hooked themselves together with bungee ropes to set a world record for the most people to complete a marathon tied together.

They enjoyed it so much that they have spent the last two years developing Big Change into an organisation working in partnership with charitable projects throughout the UK.

Speaking from Chamonix in France today, not long before they were due to set out on their first training climb, the team said they were feeling some trepidation at the prospect of the task ahead as they stared up at Mont Blanc, but could not wait to get started.

Princess Beatrice said they were all eager to get involved in another challenge in the aftermath of the marathon and hit upon the idea of the mountain climb.

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She said: “The marathon was something where 34 friends came together and it was an incredibly successful event.

“It inspired us to create something about the Big Change and what’s better when trying to launch a charity than challenging ourselves?”

The climb is expected to take two days with 10 hours of climbing in each, Holly said.

She added: “We’ve all got a little bit of butterflies but we’re all looking forward to it.”

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The Big Change team will be in Chamonix for a week to get acclimatised.

They will wait for the perfect conditions and prepare with shorter mountain climbs in the first few days. A summit attempt is expected by Thursday but may run in to the weekend.

Each member of the team has undertaken months of rigorous training in the run-up to the challenge, including practice on climbing walls, working and preparing for the high altitudes.

Abseiling Andrew: Page 5.

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