The Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge is an incredibly tough undertaking for anyone, let alone a person with a profound hearing loss such as Mo O’Brien. More people have climbed Mount Everest than rowed across the Atlantic Ocean. Therefore, having the right kit and hearing tech was essential to create the best possible environment for Mo. During the race, Mo relied on the newest ReSound high-performance hearing aids.
“I’m so immensely proud that I’ve achieved this extremely hard challenge, and to experience this with my daughter and my teammates is the icing on the cake,” said Mo. “Out on the ocean, it was incredibly helpful that my hearing aids enabled me to focus on rowing and communicating, day and night, and I could relax with music, without feeling limited by my hearing loss.”
“We’re happy and amazed with the new historic milestone, which Mo and her team have achieved,” said Christina Molt-Wengel, Senior Vice President, Global Marketing, GN Hearing. “Despite her profound hearing loss, Mo has not only set a world record, she has also inspired us with her courage and determination. Mo perfectly encapsulates our ‘hear more, do more, be more’ spirit and the idea of healthy hearing.”
Mo’s spectacular achievement shows that hearing loss and wearing hearing aids need to be reframed as common, rather than a daunting limitation stopping people doing what they want. By wearing hearing aids such as ReSound’s high-performance hearing aids, Mo successfully navigated the typical hearing loss disadvantages at sea. With her hearing solution, she was able to pay attention to important factors: she could hear sounds clearly in every direction, get a true sense of space, filter out background noise in all weathers, and better communicate with her teammates.
In addition to the fantastic achievement of completing the race, the team have raised an incredible £50,000 for three UK charities: Cornwall Blood Bikes, Carefree, and Exmouth & Lympstone Hospiscare. Their fundraising page is still opened for donations. Alongside ReSound, Coldplay, MUTU System, and Crown Records Management are also Oarsome Foursome sponsors.
There are currently 466 million people with disabling hearing loss worldwide, predicted to reach over 900 million by 2050. Helping people who are hard of hearing overcome every type of hearing loss and celebrating their unique stories is the driving force at the heart of ReSound.
