The Charity Commission for England and Wales has granted charitable status to the Dave Rayner Foundation. The fund was established in 1995 in memory of Rayner, an English rider who died in 1994 at the age of 27 after an altercation outside a nightclub in Bradford, Yorkshire, to help young riders with expenses and jobs to race abroad.

This fund was established in 1995 in memory of Rayner, a 27-year-old British rider who had left this world.

Past beneficiaries of the fund include retired professional riders Yanto Barker, Daniel Lloyd, and David Miller, current British professional riders Adam Yates (Mitchelton Scott), Hannah Barnes of Canyon SRAM, Tao Geoghegan Hart (Team Ineos), recent Tour of Guangxi stage winner Dan McRae, and two of McRae's EF Education First sports directors, Charlie Wegelius and Tom Southam.

"Being awarded Charitable Status is a great accomplishment and further ensures that riders progress in the sport of competitive cycling, both on and off the bike," said Keith Lambert, one of the founders of the Foundation. He was Rayner's team manager at Banana Falcon in 1990 and is currently manager of the British under-23 squad.

"The support we can offer is not only financial, but also takes the form of advice, guidance and emotional support to inspire, empower and support the next generation of athletes, helping them to reach their full potential.

"We hope that the Foundation's incredible boost will encourage more women and riders from lower social status groups to get involved in the sport."

Rayner turned pro with British team Interent-Yugo in 1987, moved to the Raleigh-Banana team in 1988, and then to Banana-Falcon in 1990, where she won the Scottish Provident League series.

In the 1991 and 1992 seasons, Rayner went to the Netherlands to join one of the biggest and most successful teams in the world, the Jan Lars-led Buckler team, where he was teammates with Edwig van Hooydonk, France Maassen, and Jelle Nydam. He then spent one season in the U.S. with IME-Healthshare in 1993 before returning to England in 1994 to join Rex Townsend.

The annual Dave Rayner Foundation Dinner in memory of Dave Rayner has been attended by some of the biggest names in the sport over the years, and this year Adam Yates will be the guest of honor at the Royal Armory in Leeds on Saturday, November 23.

For more information on the dinner and the charity, see daveraynerfund.co.uk