The rugby league greats stole the hearts of the nation when Kevin carried his close friend Rob, who has been battling MND for four years, across the finishing line of a marathon in Leeds earlier this year.
Their unbreakable friendship has seen Rob raise awareness of the brutal terminal condition and inspired Kevin to raise more than £9million through four ultra-endurance challenges.
The announcement to come in a fortnight is a victory for the Sunday Express which has campaigned for the former Leeds Rhinos teammates to be honoured for leading the fight against MND.
Father-of-three Rob, 41, was also part of a coalition of patients, charities and scientists that joined forces with the Sunday Express’s Fund The Fight To Cure MND crusade two years ago to secure £50million from the Government to find a cure.
A source close to the Honours Committee has revealed the two titans of English rugby will together join the ranks of His Majesty’s Commanders of the British Empire in the New Year’s Honours List.
They said: “The image of Kevin carrying Rob over the finishing line of the Leeds Marathon moved the nation and after calls from many parties, including the Sunday Express, it is fitting they will be honoured by the King.”
The New Year’s Honours List will be the first presided over by Charles since his Coronation in May and the second since he became the monarch following the death of the Queen in September last year.
The powerful gesture at the inaugural Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon in May became one of the defining moments of 2023.
Having pushed his great friend around the 26.2-mile course in a specially adapted wheelchair, Kevin stopped a couple of metres before the finish line.
He then unstrapped Rob, lifted him out of his chair and gathered him in his arms, to ensure they finished together. After carrying him across the finish line, Kevin gave his pal a kiss and returned him to his seat.
Father-of-two Kevin, 43, who lives with wife Jayne near Leeds, later said he jokingly told Rob when he stopped before the line and bent down to pick him up, “you’re not finishing before me”.
Kevin, defence coach for England’s rugby union team, recently completed seven ultramarathons in seven days in seven different cities to raise £1million for MND charities. He started his fundraising feats in 2020 by running seven marathons in seven days.
The following year he aimed to run 101 miles from Leicester, where he coached rugby union side Leicester Tigers, to Leeds in 24 hours, but got lost twice en route, so ran 104 miles instead.
When asked where he gets the inspiration to complete these tests, he said: “I do it because it’s what mates do.”
The former scrum-half, who spent all 16 years of his professional career at Leeds Rhinos, has defied doctors after being given 18 months to two years to live back in December 2019.
It came after his diagnosis with MND, a brutal degenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.
More than £5million has now been raised towards the Rob Burrow Centre for MND at Seacroft Hospital in Leeds, with building work to start next year. Rob was appointed an MBE in 2021.
Prominent MND patients Lee Millard, David Setters and Nicola Waters last night said: “We are delighted to hear the news that Rob and Kevin are to receive CBEs.
“It’s always reassuring to know they are there behind us campaigning for more research funding.”
