Kevin Sinfield says former Leeds team-mate Rob Barrow will be by his side in spirit as he embarks on his latest fundraising challenge in support of the motor neurone disease community.
Burrow lost his battle with motor neurone disease in June at the age of 41, and on Sunday, Seinfield will begin his fifth annual Running Home for Christmas challenge, but it will be the first time he does it without his late friend.
Sinfield, 44, has helped raise more than £16million for MND aid since Burrow was diagnosed in December 2019.
“Rob’s been a part of the first four challenges. Not having him at this point is pretty tough,” Sinfield said.
“I won’t get his texts tonight. I’m not sure how I’ll be emotional. I’ll probably find out when we get into it, and it’ll be pretty dark out there.
“It means a lot to me that we’re representing him and his family in the right way, he’ll make me smile, I know that.
“I don’t want this to be sad. We lost a great man, but he would want us to slip into it and have a smile on our face and do him justice.”
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Sinfield says Burrow taught him several important lessons, including the importance of giving time to others, and also made him a better friend.
In tribute to the No. 7 worn by Burrow, Sinfield’s 7 on 7 challenges have raised around £10m, taking the Burrow-inspired fundraising total to around £6m.
He will run more than 50km a day, split into 7km blocks, which he must complete an hour before starting the next block.
“They don’t get any easier, they just don’t,” Sinfield said.
“Training has been brutal and that’s what people don’t see.
“I’ve been racing all year but the last 11 and a half weeks have been really, really tough and they have to be because I can’t expect to get on the start line and just be able to ride it.
“I hate running, I don’t even like running, and I’m asthmatic, so if you put it all together, it’s not a great combination.”
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Seinfeld sent a special message to Leeds fans who gathered to pay tribute to Burrow
Each day will also include an Extra Mile event where Sinfield will join members of the MND community to complete four laps of the track.
“I don’t expect this to be a scrap. I’ve been tweaking my training for the last few weeks and you always have something you run into during the week that you don’t expect, and that shows me the experience,” Sinfield. : continued.
“At some point something is going to go wrong, and can we be good enough or tough enough to deal with it and make sure we make it happen?”
Sinfield hopes to do two more 7-on-7 challenges after this one, “given that it’s all built around the number 7.”
He said: “My expectations are that it will be the toughest yet, but I have no doubt that the team will use every ounce of support we get and use it properly to fuel us.
“And right at the forefront of that will be the Burrow family and Rob.”
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