'It is sad that Rob has gone, he was inspirational'

A man whose wife died from motor neurone disease (MND) has called Rob Burrow "inspirational" in how he raised awareness of the condition.

Steve Howe, from Rendlesham, Suffolk, lost his wife Rachael in 2022. Before she passed away they had been planning to walk the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain, starting from their home more than 1,000 miles away.

Mr Howe has decided to cycle the distance on his own to raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

He said: "There's so many people like Rob who don't get the headlines but they carry on, they do what they can until the very end."

Mr Howe originally started the challenge last summer on foot, but had to retire outside Paris after injuring his Achilles tendon.

The couple met in Norwich in 1979 as students at the University of East Anglia.

Motor neurone disease affects nerves and causes messages from the motor neurones to gradually stop reaching the muscles, causing them to weaken.

Like Rachael MND affects many people such as the former Leeds Rhinos and Great Britain rugby league player Rob Burrow, who died from the disease on Sunday.

"It's sad that Rob has gone, he's inspirational... There's so many people like Rob who don't get the headlines but they carry on, they do what they can until the very end," said Mr Howe.

He added: "The end is always painful... we took Rachael all the over the place - and to see the world through someone's eyes who you know will never see those views again, is very humbling. You're prepared but the end is never what you want."

Mr Howe has so far raised more than £5,000, which will go towards researching a cure for the disease.

"If you get MND it's palliative care, and most of the money that's raised will go to research to try to find a cure, so your children won't need to suffer like Rob and Rachael have."

Mr Howe has completed 1,200 miles (1,931km) of the trip from Rendlesham, Suffolk, to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, but he still has 90 miles (145km) to go.

"As a word camino means a way or a path. Sometimes it means just a geographical path from A to B, sometimes it's a journey that you take to reflect on life, to enjoy life.

"So this is Rachael's camino, her path that has helped me get through the past couple of years and to celebrate her life."

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