KEVIN Sinfield CBE will be in Wrexham this weekend as part of his latest challenge raising money in aid of the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association.

The former rugby league great and current England rugby union coach will lead his fundraising team for their fifth annual running challenge in support of the charity, with this year’s theme being ‘running home for Christmas’.

He was inspired to start raising money for the MND Association after his former Leeds Rhinos and England teammate and close friend, Rob Burrow, was diagnosed with the disease in December, 2019. 

Since then he has raised almost £10m after completing four challenges, including seven marathons in seven days, 101 miles in 24 hours, and seven ultra marathons in seven days. 

The week-long challenge will start on Sunday (December 1)  with Kevin and the team set to cover over 50km per day, visiting seven regions across Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The route will see Kevin and the team finish day one of the challenge in Wrexham, where he will run to from Liverpool.

Kevin and the team are set to run through Lavister, Rossett, Marford, Gresford and Acton, before arriving at the SToK Cae Ras just after 5.30pm. 

The team will attempt to complete each days’ distance in 7km blocks which will start on the hour, every hour. This means they will race against the clock to complete the 7km distance and have time to rest before starting the next stage.

Kevin and the team are scheduled to stop at Rossett Hall Hotel at 4.08pm before setting off to the Acton Park pub at 4.30pm. They are set to arrive at the Acton at 5.07pm, before heading to the SToK Cae Ras at 5.30pm.

Like Kevin’s previous four challenges, the feat is based around the number seven – made iconic by his former teammate and fellow Association patron Rob Burrow CBE who wore the number 7 shirt during a glittering career with Leeds Rhinos and England.

Kevin’s ‘running home for Christmas’ route

Day 1: Liverpool to Wrexham

Day 2: Gloucester to Bristol

Day 3: Belfast

Day 4: Stirling to Glasgow

Day 5: Hull

Day 6: Northampton to Leicester

Day 7: Manchester  

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Kevin Sinfield CBE said: “It is a special time of year for our challenges. We always say that people like to see us battling through the elements but for us it is wonderful to arrive in cities with the Christmas lights up and everyone feeling good.

"The MND community are always in our thoughts but especially at that time of year when families are going through tough times. We want to meet as many of the MND community as we can along the way, whether that is at our stops after each 7km block, or at the Extra Mile events, which was so special last year. We are announcing a bit earlier this year so as many people as possible can get involved either as supporters or sponsors.” 

Jo Coker, director of income generation, MND Association, said: "Like everyone who has followed Kevin’s team over the past few years, we are in awe of their achievements and relentless determination to raise funds and awareness of motor neurone disease (MND).

"There are more than 5000 people living with MND in the UK, and so many of them have told us how much it means to have Kevin championing them and raising the profile of this brutal disease.

"We’re delighted that during ‘running home for Christmas’ people affected by MND have another opportunity to run with Kev and the team, and excited to cheer them on from our national office in Northampton on the penultimate day of the challenge.”