Kevin Sinfield hopes Lewis Moody can be part of latest MND fundraising challenge

Kevin Sinfield is hoping Lewis Moody can be part of his latest challenge to raise funding and awareness for motor neurone disease.

Sinfield will embark on the ‘7 in 7: Together’ challenge next Monday, his sixth annual event to support the MND community after his friend and former Leeds Rhinos team-mate Rob Burrow was diagnosed with the incurable and life-limiting disease in 2019.

Sinfield has already raised over £10million towards research into the disease and support for families affected by it.

Former England rugby union captain Moody – a 2003 World Cup winner – announced his MND diagnosis in September.

Sinfield has been in touch with Moody, and said: “It reminded me so much of Rob, that first conversation.

“I know (Lewis) is a World Cup winner, but that probably doesn’t do him justice of what a great champion guy he is. He’s just a lovely man, a big family man. I’m very hopeful he will join us at some point on the route.

“Probably because of our locations this year, it doesn’t make it particularly easy for him to get to us, but I’m pretty hopeful he’ll join us at some point. It would be great to have him with us.

“It’d be important for Lewis to see the love and support that is out there from the MND community, because I think he’d be bowled over by the support, by the love, by the well-wishers. We’d love to have him with us.”

Sinfield will run seven ultramarathons in seven days, culminating on December 7 at the Rhinos’ AMT Headingley Stadium and combining with the Leeds Santa Dash.

The first leg of the challenge next Monday will take Sinfield and his group from Bury St Edmunds to Ipswich. Former Ipswich forward Marcus Stewart, who was diagnosed with MND in September 2022, is set to join Sinfield at the start and end of the opening leg.

“To get to see some of this love and support Marcus has will be great for us,” Sinfield added.

Sinfield, now a skills and kicking coach for the England rugby union team, says his old friend Burrow is still the central driving force behind the challenge, nearly a year-and-a-half on from his death.

The 7 in 7 challenges derive their name from Burrow’s old shirt number, and Sinfield said: “The beauty of Rob being here was that I got to see him and spend time with him. Clearly, that’s not there now, but like all of us, when we lose people, you hold on to your fond memories.

“It’s not unique for me to be out running, look at my watch and it has all the sevens on it. It’s not unique for me to be out on a run and see a registration plate that’s got three sevens on it.

“There’s stuff like that that happens to me all the time and they are nice memories to have. I only think of Rob in a really positive, inspiring, fun way.

“I can’t think about him the whole week next week, because I’ll just be a blubbing wreck. But certainly in the tough moments, I’ll think of him and he’ll drive us on.”

:: Full details of this year’s challenge at https://www.therhinos.co.uk/the-club/sinfield-together-2025