Kevin Sinfield vows to keep raising funds to combat MND as he sets off on his latest challenge

Today (December 1), the Leeds Rhinos legend set off from Headingley on yet another challenge to raise money to fight Motor Neuron Disease (MND) - for which he has already raised £8 million.

The 43-year-old recently questioned his ability to continue “pounding the streets” ahead of his most recent ‘7 in 7’ ultramarathon challenge last year, but said the overwhelming public support he has received is enough to keep him going for the foreseeable future.

His latest challenge sees him run from Headingley to York Minster for the first day, before taking on six more back-to-back runs which include visits to Birmingham, Brighton, Edinburgh and Dublin.

Sinfield said: “Whilst my knees keep going, I will continue to do my bit and even then, when my knees won’t work like they should, we will find different ways of trying to raise money and awareness.

“We have been part of something that has been pretty powerful over the last couple of years and we are massively humbled by it.

“Last time we thought we shouldn’t go again, (but) on average three times a day people will stop me and tell me somebody they know has MND or someone has passed with MND, and they want us to keep going.

“The plan was to do three, but we haven’t got a cure, and we feel we can make a better impact on people’s lives who have MND, so why would we stop?”

Sinfield started his fundraising campaigns in support of his friend and Leeds Rhinos teammate Rob Burrow in 2020, when he took on seven marathons in just as many days. The following year he ran 101 miles in under 24 hours, from Welford Road in Leicester to Headingley.

This year, the final leg of his challenge will take him from Twickenham Stadium to The Mall, the traditional finish of the London Marathon.

Sinfield said: “I promised myself last time I did the London Marathon that I would enjoy the last stretch so I was able to take a fair bit in. It will be a bit different with cars and pedestrians, but when we get to that finish point, I am sure we will be pretty tired but pretty happy.”