On the 15th December 2021 my life and that of my family’s was changed forever when I was diagnosed with motor neurone disease, a severely life shortening neurological disorder for which there is no cure.

It has been an extremely difficult situation to accept but with the love and support from friends, family and amazing colleagues I have been able to come out fighting.

Whilst there is no cure or meaningful treatment available today there is an army of people trying to rectify this but funding is tight.

In June I was introduced to senior figures at the mynameisdoddie foundation set up by rugby legend Doddie Weir who was diagnosed in 2016. Their ambition is a world free of MND. They are passionate about research and have already moved the dial to reach that goal but much more needs to be done.

In July with huge support from friends I organised a charity bike ride. So many people went out of their way to help and support. Seeing and feeling everyone pull together was truly overwhelming. Within two weeks the route was set, the support crew organised and via our amazing network I had video messages of support from various A- list celebrities, sports stars and even famous
astronauts! We set ourselves a £10k target but as we crossed the finishing line we had raised a staggering £175k.

I have since hosted a charity ball which was organised by a group of amazing local friends. What we thought might be a small school parent dinner with a raffle quickly turned into a 400 person extravaganza which raised another £215k!

With crazy friends, colleagues and even complete strangers doing some insane challenges I am determined to help raise as much money as possible to help change the path that future diagnosed patients have to travel.

This fundraising page/link is for the mynameisdoddie foundation. Together we can make a difference.

Thank you

James