Many have been left devastated by the news that warrior Doddie Weir had passed away at the age of 52 after a six year long battle with Motor Neurone Disease.
Doddie may have been a rugby union legend for Scotland but he is beloved by rugby league fans for the support he has given Leeds Rhinos legend Rob Burrow since he was diagnosed in December 2019.
The two alongside the likes of footballer Ed Slater have gone on to be spearheads in the fight against the disease and driving funding.
After the loss of Doddie, Dr Brian Dickie of the MND Association spoke to BBC Breakfast about the impact of the two on the fight against MND:
“Doddie and Rob have been a driving force in the United toe End MND campaign, that’s a collaboration between people with MND, the three main charities in the UK: My Name’s Doddie, The MND Association and MND Scotland. They also brought in leading neurologists, and that really pushed the government to announce that it would invest £50 million in research into MND.
“At the end of this month we’re going to have a big meeting of around 80 MND scientists, neurologists, patients and funders to play the next stages of how we access this funding and how we spend this as effectively as possible to make sure we’re moving the conveyer belt along from lab to doctor’s prescription.”
'Doddie and Rob have been a driving force in the United to End MND campaign'
Dr Brian Dickie from the MND Association told #BBCBreakfast the Government needs to fulfil its promise of £50m for research as a tribute to Doddie Weir https://t.co/JaPe39Va4s pic.twitter.com/Qe0ahAXtvG
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) November 27, 2022
It’s interesting to see him mention the money from the government after the likes of Burrow and Sinfield have slammed them for not yet delivering the funds.
Sinfield said recently:
“Something I think about regularly, this has been a huge part of my life for a couple of years as has spending time with Rob.
“My concern is if that campaign hadn’t started a couple of years ago, where would we be?
“Rob and co have done brilliant work with government to secure £50 million in funding but why hasn’t that funding been handed over yet?
“I understand that with anything like this, there is an element of red tape but then I look at some of the other ways they have spent money and I don’t think they have been scrutinised in the same way this has. That’s what I don’t understand disappoints me because there is people dying and families are being ravaged and being left.
“I can’t see any valid reason why this money is being held back. This is important that this comes across and the scientists work together and we move the dial forward.
“The £50 million is for research and there is nothing in there that helps families and all those other things that people don’t think of.”
