Champion

Rugby league star loses MND fight at 41 | Wills pays tribute to £15m campaigner

- PAUL BYRNE

AT 5ft 5in tall and weighing under 11 stone, Rob Burrow was far smaller than his team-mates and opponents on the rugby league pitch.

Using his stature to his advantage, he went on to win eight Grand Finals, three World Club Challenges and two Challenge Cups in a glittering career.

And when he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2019, two years after retiring, Rob showed the same fighting spirit to raise awareness about motor neurone disease.

He also raised millions to tackle the debilitating and incurable condition.

His battle with MND - to which he has finally succumbed at the age of just 41 was so awe-inspiring that it transcended sport, touching the hearts of millions of people. Rob's death was announced yesterday by Leeds Rhinos, the club for which he made 492 appearances.

He leaves wife Lindsey. 41, and their two daughters, Macy, 11, Maya, eight, and son Jackson, five.

In a statement, the family said last night: "It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of our beloved son, husband, father, brother and friend.

"Rob has always been a true inspiration throughout his life, whether that was on the rugby league field or during his battle with MND.

"He never allowed others to define what he could achieve and believed in his own ability to do more.

"The outpouring of love and support that Rob and the Burrow family have received over the last four-and-a-half years meant so much to Rob."

"Rob never accepted that he couldn't do something, he just found his own way of doing it better than anyone else. He will continue to inspire us all every day. In a world full of adversity, we must dare to dream."