Doddie Aid passes £500K mark within a fortnight

The Doddie Active Inter-District (Aid) challenge, which aims to raise as much money as possible for My Name’5 Doddie Foundation by the start of this year’s 6 Nations Championship, has also seen more than 20,000 people across Scotland and beyond sign up to it since it kicked off on New Year’s Day.

The event is based around Scotland’s five former rugby districts – North & Midlands, South of Scotland, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Exiles – with individuals from each area clocking up as many miles as they can within a five-week period.

But people from all over have been joining the challenge and choosing a team to support, with Wales star Jonathan Davies joining the South, and actors Gerard Butler and Ewan McGregor opting for Team Glasgow and North & Midlands respectively.

The winning district will be the one which covers the most miles and raises the most funds.

The My Name’5 Doddie Foundation was established after Doddie, a former internationalist and British & Lions player, was diagnosed with MND in 2017.

The Foundation raises funds for research into the causes of the disease, while making grants to individuals suffering from it to enable them to live as fulfilled lives as possible.

Doddie Aid 2021 has been organised by Rob Wainwright, who also played rugby for Scotland and was himself a British & Irish Lions player.

A close friend of Doddie’s, Rob hopes Doddie Aid 2021 will not only raise an incredible amount of money for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation but also help raise awareness of MND and the need to find meaningful treatments for the disease, which as yet is incurable.

He said: “It’s absolutely fantastic that so many people have signed up to this year’s competition to date and that, collectively, they’ve raised more than £500,000 and have already covered more than one million miles.

“Doddie is such an inspirational character and has demonstrated incredible bravery and integrity since revealing he had MND. It is testament to him that so many people have got behind the cause so quickly and so enthusiastically.

Rob added there was still time to join in and today (Friday), the organisers are running ‘sign a friend Friday’, to encourage as many people as possible to take part and hopefully smash the one million pound mark.

“The more individuals who take part, the more money we raise,” added Rob. “Plus, we also have the added bonus of winding up each rival district.”

Doddie won 61 caps for Scotland and was part of the squad which won the 1999 Five Nations title.

He is also a former British and Irish Lion, and won championships with his club sides, Melrose and Newcastle Falcons.

Commenting on Doddie Aid 2021, he said: “Everyone at the Foundation is incredibly grateful to all those people taking part in Doddie Aid, not just in Scotland but across the world.

“The money raised will go towards vital MND research projects and to supporting people living with MND.”

“However the event is not only generating much needed funds, but it is also helping raise awareness of the charity across Scotland and beyond.

“I hope everyone taking part will enjoy getting out and about and getting some exercise. Most importantly, I hope they all have fun.

“After that, all that’s left for me to say is may the best team win – and may it be the South!”

To sign up to Doddie Aid, visit: https://doddieaid.com/

More information about the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation can be found at www.myname5doddie.co.uk.