The rugby legend will receive a knighthood for the fundraiser carried out in honour of his late best friend and teammate Rob Burrows
Rugby hero Kevin Sinfield will finally get a knighthood in the King's Birthday Honours. The 45-year-old will be awarded the gong following his fundraising efforts in memory of his late friend and teammate Rob Burrow, reveals the Mirror.
The former Leeds and England rugby league player has raised more than £11million for motor neurone disease charities after Rob was diagnosed with the devastating muscle-wasting condition in 2019. There have been several calls for the sportsman to be knighted, with Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle describing him as "a rugby league legend who should be Sir Kevin Sinfield" earlier this week.
The nation was moved by the strong bond the pair shared, with Kevin famously carrying Rob over the finish line at the Leeds Marathon in 2023 after pushing him round the course in a specially adapted wheelchair. In 2023, they were both made CBEs, as Prince William surprised them with their awards at the home of Leeds Rhinos, Headingley Stadium. Five months later, Rob tragically died aged 41, four and a half years after his diagnosis.
MND is a life-shortening neurological condition that impacts the nerves sending messages from the brain to the muscles. There is currently no cure and treatment focuses on managing symptoms. While there is no research linking MND to head injury, Rob was not the only rugby player to be diagnosed with MND. In 2022 former Scotland international Doddie Weir died aged 52, six years on from his diagnosis.
And ex-England captain Lewis Moody revealed he had been diagnosed with the condition last year. Sinfield, now an England rugby union coach, has carried out a series of epic endurance challenges to raise millions in memory of his best friend. Last year, the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease at Seacroft Hospital opened its doors in Leeds, the first ever purpose-built facility to help MND patients, and to carry out vital research.
Joined by Kevin, and Rob's widow Lindsey, Prince William told the rugby star's children Macy, Maya, and Jackson, they should be "so proud of your father because he really was an incredibly brave and very special man". He added: "This is a world-leading centre that's going to save a lot of lives.
" The rugby player just announced his final challenge, which will see him run an ultramarathon a day for seven days. Known as "7 in 7: The Grand Finale", Sinfield will run between Hull and Manchester, visiting all 12 English Super League grounds. He will run a mile each day alongside people affected by the neurodegenerative illness. He told BBC Breakfast: "Our team have done a wonderful job.
I couldn't have done any of it without them, they are so unselfish in the way they've gone about this.
"We couldn't have done this on our own. The money has gone a long way and we're getting closer and closer, but we've got to keep pushing, we've got to try and find a cure.
" The King's Birthday Honours List will be published this weekend. The Government does not comment on honours before they are announced.
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