Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield granted freedom of Leeds

Rugby league stars Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield have been granted the freedom of Leeds at a ceremony in the city.

Leeds City Council gave the Leeds Rhinos legends its highest civic honour for their charity fundraising work.

Burrow, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND) in 2019, said it felt "amazing" as he had always seen Leeds "as my city".

Council leader James Lewis said the authority wanted to honour the pair's work and their "bond of friendship".

Bob Bowman, the chief executive of the Leeds Rhinos Foundation, accepted the honour on Sinfield's behalf, as the former loose forward was unable to make the ceremony due to commitments linked to his new role with the England rugby union team.

Sinfield has been relentless in his support for his former teammate and recently ran seven ultra marathons in a week, raising £2.7m to fun research into MND.

Pontefract-born Burrow, who spent his entire career with the Rhinos, said he had been "blown away by the support of Leeds".

He said since he got the news of his diagnosis, Leeds "as a city" had shown it cares "just by people stopping to ask how I feel".

He added that he was grateful to everyone who helped raise money.

"To the guys who fundraise, to the guys shoving that money in my pocket... [you] all mean the same," he said, adding: "People of Leeds take a bow."

Lindsey Burrow said her husband was "so incredibly proud" as it was "such an honour to be here today for Rob to receive this award".

"Leeds is a wonderful city and it is the place where Rob has spent most of his adult life playing for the Leeds Rhinos," she said.

"The support that the people of Leeds have shown Rob since his diagnosis has just been incredible.

She said Burrow and Sinfield had been "part of the golden generation of Leeds and have brought success to Leeds as a city".

"I think the work that Rob has done, opening up his doors at a time when he is most vulnerable, is a real courageous and brave thing to do," she said.

"That's given Kevin the opportunity to raise such vital awareness and the money that he has raised has just been incredible."

A new marathon is being organised in Rob Burrow's name with the first event set to begin in May.

The money it raises will go towards building the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease at the city's Seacroft Hospital, which will offer help to patients diagnosed with the condition.

The council announced it would be giving the pair the freedom of Leeds in December.

Mr Lewis said the Rhinos legends had "brought the search for a cure [for MND] to the forefront of public attention" and the authority had been determined to honour the pair together, due to the "bond of friendship between them".

The pair's names have been added to an engraved roll of honour in Leeds Civic Hall.

Other previous recipients of the award include politicians Sir Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandela, playwright and author Alan Bennett and Leeds United's team from 1967 to 1974.

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