Lindsey Burrow is already looking ahead to her next marathon adventure after running London on Sunday to raise money for charity in memory of her husband Rob.
The former rugby league great was only 41 when he died in June 2024, five years after being diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
But mum-of-three Lindsey, 42, says he was with her in spirit all the way round the London Marathon – and will be again when she runs another one in Leeds on May 11.
“Rob was my reason why”
Posting on Instagram, she wrote: “One down one to go in 2 weeks 💙💛 Thank you for every message of encouragement and the kind and generous donations to my fundraising page. I am incredibly grateful.
“When it got tough Rob was my reason WHY – his bravery and courage inspires me everyday to never give in. This one was for you Rob 💙 I hope you were watching down and I made you proud.
“My legs are sore but they will recover. People with MND don’t have that luxury. I will continue to try and do my little bit to help those families affected. Together we will keep banging the drum x”
The Leeds Marathon has been renamed in Rob’s honour and Burrow will be running to continue raising money for the Leeds Rhinos Foundation and Leeds Hospitals Charity.
She has never run two marathons before, and doing so in such quick succession will be a challenge, but one she insists she is ready for after posting a time of 04:57:31 in London.
Lindsey Burrow time and splits
Lindsey put in a terrific performance Sunday, and her day looked like this:
| Split | Time | Diff | min/km | km/h |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5K | 00:30:09 | 30:09 | 06:02 | 9.95 |
| 10K | 01:01:42 | 31:33 | 06:19 | 9.51 |
| 15K | 01:35:21 | 33:39 | 06:44 | 8.91 |
| 20K | 02:10:13 | 34:52 | 06:59 | 8.61 |
| Half | 02:18:00 | 07:47 | 07:06 | 8.46 |
| 25K | 02:45:38 | 27:38 | 07:05 | 8.48 |
| 30K | 03:23:23 | 37:45 | 07:33 | 7.95 |
| 35K | 04:01:52 | 38:29 | 07:42 | 7.80 |
| 40K | 04:40:43 | 38:51 | 07:47 | 7.72 |
| Finish | 04:57:31 | 16:48 | 07:40 | 7.84 |
Rob’s MND diagnosis came two years after he retired from a stellar 17-year career with the Rhinos, during which he made almost 500 appearances and won 13 trophies.
With the help of former team-mate and close friend Kevin Sinfield, the pair raised more than £15 million for MND charities as Rob battled the disease and both men were awarded CBEs in the 2024 New Year Honours.
Now, Lindsey is following in his footsteps and has already raised over £13,000 with her “Two marathons in two weeks” campaign, which you can donate to here:
https://www.givewheel.com/fundraising/5950/2-marathons-in-2-weeks/
