Three Oxford University students completed four ultramarathons for charity last week: Thomas Milton (St Hilda’s College), and Harry Kyd and Jack Harper-Hill (the Queen’s College), ran in aid of motor neurone disease (MND) research. Their route began in Oxford and ended at Big Ben, covering 85km the first day, 66km on the second, and 50km on the third. In total, they ran around 200km.
They were inspired by prominent rugby players, such as Doddie Wier and Rob Burrows, who had raised awareness of the correlation between concussions and development of MND. Kevin Sinfield was a particularly strong influence. Thomas told Cherwell how they admired his “unbelievable work over the years to raise awareness for this important cause”, and how “unreal” it had been to receive a text message from him supporting their efforts.
The idea for the ultramarathon first came in December 2024, “over a pint in Chequers”. Each of the runners had been involved in sport before, but not to the level of an ultramarathon – Jack said he had “only ever run a distance of around 5km before this”.
While Harry admitted that the planning process did begin on ChatGPT, they quickly sought “proper training planners”. In the end, an ex-Royal Marine, now online PT, helped them put together a plan. It consisted of 3 runs per week: one longer run over 30km, one recovery run at a slower pace, and one fast run at a “shorter distance” of 10-15km.
The run itself began at 3:30am, which Thomas said “made the whole thing feel really serious”. Parents, friends, and rugby teammates joined at various points throughout the 200km, which “made the whole thing so much more enjoyable”. The runners agreed, however, that the best part was the finish. Harry told Cherwell: “It was raining and cold and windy but just the thought that we’d actually completed [the run] made it the most incredible feeling”. Similarly, Thomas emphasised the “amazing feeling” of realising they’d completed their goals.
The journey wasn’t without its challenges. By the second day, Jack had damaged his tendon and Harry had torn his hamstring. Jack “had to straight leg walk some of the way, repeating just “left right left right” until the finish line”. He spoke of having to “make sure we worked as a team and set any egos aside, which was a really good opportunity to build ourselves.”
The runners’ goal was to raise money for MND research, but increasing awareness was of equal importance. On the route, Harry spoke of how “there were a lot of people that stopped us (after recognising our MNDA[Motor Neurone Disease Association] tops) to let us know that they had been affected by MND.”
Motor neurone disease affects up to 5,000 adults in the UK at any one time, and kills six people per day. It attacks the nerves controlling movement, preventing muscles from working, but generally leaving the senses unaffected. As a result, those with the disease are “locked in a failing body”, without the ability to move, talk, or, eventually, breathe. It currently has no cure.
Recently, research has pointed to a link between head injuries and the risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases like MND, with elite rugby players at a greater risk than the general population. Rob Burrow, former England rugby player, died aged 41 from the disease in 2022. He had been involved in fundraising with Kevin Sinfield, his former team-mate. Sinfield has raised over £7 million for MND.
Thomas, Harry, and Jack set their fundraising target at £5,000. At the time of writing, their JustGiving page showed £9,495 raised, almost doubling their target. Including Gift Aid, the total is over £11,000. The runners spoke of future fundraising efforts through further challenges, like a coast to coast run. However, for now, they said “they’ll stick with recovering and fundraising/promoting this one.” They highlighted their gratitude to “all who came along the way”, who they “would not have done without”.
More information is available on their Instagram page, @westgate2westminster.
Before the runners had completed the ultramarathons, the MND Association’s Head of Community Fundraising Operations, Amy Kilpatrick said: “We are so grateful to Thomas, Harry and Jack for taking on this challenge and for choosing to support the Association in this way.
“Over the past five years, our Patron Kevin Sinfield CBE has done an extraordinary amount to not only raise money on behalf of MND charities but to raise awareness of MND as well and we are delighted the students have been inspired by him to take on a challenge of their own.
“The money raised will help us to improve care and support for people living with MND and their families, while also helping to fund important research into this devastating disease.
“We wish them all the very best of luck with the challenge.”
Donations can be made via the following link: https://www.justgiving.com/page/runformnd-harry-kyd-173788806665?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL&utm_campaign=015.
