Former Liverpool defender, Stephen Darby, is leading a group of fundraisers on a 175-mile walk across the United Kingdom for the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation and the wider MND community.
Darby, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2018, will be joined by several members of the football community on the march which will take them to 17 different football stadiums across three days.
The disease has become more spoken about in the sporting community in recent years thanks to the efforts of Darby, as well as former Rugby League player, Rob Burrow, who also suffers from the crippling and terminal disease.
Burrow was at the start line alongside around 200 other individuals who are all participating to raise awareness and funds to go towards MND research. Burrow's wife, Lindsey, was also in attendance on commented on how “incredible” it was to see the number of people who has turned up to support the cause.
Bradford to Liverpool via 15 other stadiums
“Stephen is doing great in himself. Mentally, he is so, so strong. But it's a cruel disease that breaks you down very slowly and very cruelly.”
Darby has been battling against the disease for six years now despite life expectancy being under five years from diagnosis. In December 2023, he shared pictures of some of the head injuries he has suffered due to the disease as it has stopped him from being able to hold himself up when he falls over.
Former Huddersfield striker, Marcus Stewart, is another sufferer but is also another example of someone who is beating the odds. He was diagnosed in September 2022 but is still living a relatively normal life. He is set to participate in the entire walk and at the start line, he said:
“Things haven't progressed so quickly for me, I'm still able to walk, talk, do most things and live a pretty normal life. It's hard to put into words what it's like being involved with the MND community. I'm doing the best I can to help everyone.”