13 brilliant pictures capturing Leeds Rhinos legend Kevin Sinfield on first leg of his ultra marathon

The former captain set off from Headingley Stadium today (Friday December 1) for the first leg of his latest 7 in 7 in 7 ultra marathon supporting five charities raising money to fund the fight against Motor Neuron Disease (MND).

After arriving at York Minster, the challenge will go on with six more back-to-back runs which include visits to Birmingham, Brighton, Edinburgh and Dublin.

The 43-year-old recently questioned his ability to continue “pounding the streets” ahead of his most recent ‘7 in 7 in 7’ ultramarathon challenge last year, but said the overwhelming public support he has received is enough to keep him going for the foreseeable future.

Sinfield said ahead of the challenge: “Whilst my knees keep going, I will continue to do my bit and even then, when my knees won’t work like they should, we will find different ways of trying to raise money and awareness.

“We have been part of something that has been pretty powerful over the last couple of years and we are massively humbled by it.

“Last time we thought we shouldn’t go again, (but) on average three times a day people will stop me and tell me somebody they know has MND or someone has passed with MND, and they want us to keep going.

“The plan was to do three, but we haven’t got a cure, and we feel we can make a better impact on people’s lives who have MND, so why would we stop?”

Sinfield started his fundraising challenges in support of his friend and former teammate Rob Burrow in 2020.

Here are 13 great photos from the start of his latest challenge: