The 30 minute documentary following the former Leeds Rhino player will air on BBC Two tonight.
The heartwarming documentary, entitled Kevin Sinfield: Going The Extra Mile follows the rugby player and fundraising legend on his incredible journey to support those with MND, particularly former team mate and friend Rob Burrow.
The documentary will see Sinfield speaking exclusively to the BBC about how he plans to fundraise in the future and his new job as the defence coach of England’s Rugby Union team ahead of the World Cup and Six Nations championships.
The athlete has so far been far from your average fun run.
Beginning his fundraising efforts in 2020, after Burrow was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), humbly stating he was ‘just went for a run for a mate’, to support MND charities and raise awareness of people living with the disease.
This saw Sinfield running seven marathons in seven days before completed the Ultra 7 In 7 challenge, running seven ultra-marathons (which means running around 40 miles a day) in 2022.
The challenge was completed when Kevin Sinfield arrived at Old Trafford at half time in the Men’s Rugby League World Cup Final- and resulted in raising over £7 million pounds.
For his fundraising efforts, Sinfield has been given an OBE by Duke of Cambridge (now HRH Prince William of Wales) and a standing ovation and special award at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony in Salford.
More recently both Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield were given ‘the highest civic award that can be bestowed’ at an awards ceremony at Leeds Civic Hall that the names of the friends engraved into a roll of honour at the banqueting suite, and the Freedom of Leeds honour award.
The documentary will highlights the extraordinary dedication that the former Leeds Rhinos player has given to help those affected by MND, and also explain a little more about how this journey has changed him personally too.
Kevin Sinfield says: “When we set out on the first challenge back in December 2020, we just wanted to help a friend who had found himself in the toughest imaginable position. With a young family of three children under the age of 10, he had been handed a life ending MND diagnosis and worse still, like so many, was then locked in his home as we battled the impact of Covid-19.
“What started out as a way to help a friend became so much more over the course of those first seven marathons in seven days and has grown incredibly over the subsequent two challenges of the Extra Mile and the Ultra 7 in 7. I think everyone can imagine what they would do for their friend in the same position and the overwhelming support has shown that we are a nation who cares about people who are facing their own adversity.
“I am proud to be part of the MND community, the people who are living with the impact of MND who I have been privileged to meet since 2020 inspire me every day and we will never stop banging the drum for MND until we find a cure.”
Read More:
- Kevin Sinfield and Rob Burrow to receive Freedom of Leeds honour award
- Kevin Sinfield raises £2m+ as he finishes Ultra 7 in 7 challenge across the UK
- Rugby legends and MND heroes Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield given special honours at BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2022
The documentary Kevin Sinfield: Going The Extra Mile will air on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on Friday 3 February at 7pm.
Feature Image – BBC Two
