Burrow to welcome home Sinfield and charity fundraisers at marathon
ROB Burrow is planning to welcome home his mate, Kevin Sinfield at this year’s Leeds Marathon which is named in his honour on Sunday.
More than 14,000 thousand runners are set to run through the city, with the Rhinos legends set to meet at the finish line inside Headingley Stadium, where they achieved some of their greatest sporting moments together.
Runners are expected to raise millions of pounds for the two main partner charities; the MND Association and the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease Appeal, alongside a host of other local and national charities.
Rob and his family have campaigned for awareness and to raise money for MND charities since he was diagnosed with the disease in December 2019.
His goal is to realise the dream of a new MND Care Centre in Leeds that will bear his name and support people living with MND and their families, and this week planning permission was granted for that to go ahead at Seacroft Hospital, run by Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
More than £5.6m of the £6.8m target for the centre has been raised by Leeds Hospitals Charity, through its Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease appeal.
Sunday’s marathon will start and end at the home of the Rhinos at Headingley Stadium, with Sinfield set to take part alongside various other former Leeds Rhinos players and Rob’s friends, including Jamie Jones-Buchanan, Jamie Peacock , Barrie McDermott and Gary Mercer.
Nick Baines, of the Kaiser Chiefs, is set to take part in the half marathon and Rachel Woolford, winner of this year’s The Apprentice will be running the marathon.
More than £5m in charitable donations were raised last year.
Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds Council’s deputy leader and executive member for economy, culture and education, said: “Rob and Kevin’s inspirational story in many ways epitomises the best of Leeds, and it will be great to see them together once again at Headingley Stadium.”