Lewis Moody privileged to ‘grab hold of the baton’ in raising money for MND
By Mark Walker, Press Association
Lewis Moody says he is privileged to have “grabbed hold of the baton” from previous motor neurone disease fund-raisers Doddy Weir and Rob Burrow.
Former England rugby union captain Moody, diagnosed with MND last September, will complete his seven-day 500-mile cycling challenge at Twickenham on Saturday.
Moody, a World Cup-winner with England in 2003, will deliver the match ball before Northampton face Exeter in the Gallagher Prem Cup final, having set off from Newcastle last Sunday to raise funds for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.
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Former Scotland forward Weir died of MND in 2022, aged 52, and his charity has raised more than £23.5million in aid of MND research.
Ex-Leeds rugby league star Burrow lived with the disease for over four years before he died in 2024, aged 41, and his former team-mate Kevin Sinfield has raised over £11m for MND causes in tribute to his close friend.
Moody told the Press Association after completing stage five of his challenge at Bath Rugby Club that he had been in the “pain zone” and had been riding “an emotional tidal wave”.
He said: “When you’re put in places of adversity is when you generally feel most alive and sometimes the greatest satisfaction or enjoyment feels the same.
“You’re carrying another burden that you wouldn’t otherwise be carrying, and that’s to say the burden is a privileged burden.
“I’m now in this MND space and have the platform that allows me to grab hold of the baton that the boys have already moved on such a long way.
“I’m talking about Doddie, Rob and Kev – my role is to just support the cause and try to amplify the noise in this space.
“If we can do that, and if this ride can do that, then that’s a positive outcome for me.”
Moody was joined by Weir’s wife Kathy and son Hamish, who plays for Melrose Rugby, at the start of the route, while former England team-mates Martin Johnson and Martin Corry have been alongside him throughout.
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Ex-rugby internationals Kenny Logan, Geordan Murphy, Louis Deacon and Joe Worsley were also among the support team which has accompanied Moody all the way, together with wife Annie and sons Dylan and Ethan.
The 48-year-old said he felt “like I’ve got 20 Kevin Sinfields around me” after confirming the Lewis Moody XV Ride had raised over £350,000 by Thursday.
“More effective treatments are a possibility, they are reachable soon, we’re talking within years, whereas a cure, that’s maybe slightly further away,” the former Leicester and Bath forward added.
“But treatment that means people’s life expectancy is extended, that their quality of life is improved, those things should all be possible now.
“The projects, the research, all those things are ready, people are in place, but there just aren’t the funds to support them all.”
