Tom Youngs speaks publicly about his late wife, Tiff, as Will Findlay takes on new challenge
Former British and Irish Lions player, ex-England hooker and Leicester Tigers club captain Tom Youngs has spoken publicly for the first time about his wife Tiffany, sadly passed away to blood cancer in 2022.
To support Will Findlay visit his JustGiving page on – https://www.justgiving.com/page/will-findlay-250in50
Speaking to BBC Breakfast (Tuesday 14th March) Tom will appear alongside his ex-colleague Will Findlay, a Strength and Conditioning coach at Leicester Tigers, on the sofa to talk about Will’s mammoth challenge for Blood Cancer UK to continue Tiff’s legacy.
Blood cancer is the fifth most common cause of cancer and is made up of a number of different forms of the disease. Tiff was diagnosed with a form of blood cancer called Hodgkin-lymphoma in 2014. Just three years later she was told that the cancer was terminal and potentially had just a month to live.
In 2018, Tiffany Youngs was notified that she was in a state of remission from her cancer, but then she sadly passed away in 2022 when cancer returned.
Will is taking on a 250km challenge in 50 hours to carry on Tiff’s legacy fundraising for Blood Cancer UK. The 24-year-old is running roughly 1m for every person living with blood cancer in the UK. The challenge will take place between 17th and 19th March around a route that will start and finish outside Mattoli Woods Welford Road stadium.
Speaking about the challenge, Will Findlay, Strength and Conditioning Coach at the Premiership rugby team, Leicester Tigers said:
“My friend, the ex-England and Leicester Tigers player Tom Youngs, sadly lost his wife, Tiff, to blood cancer last year. I challenged myself to support Tiff while she was battling and provide immediate hope and support for the family, but this year, I want to do something even bigger to continue Tiff’s legacy.
“I’m going to be running 1m for each of people living with blood cancer un the UK, that’s 250km and I will attempt to do it across 50 hours, in continuous intervals. That’s the same as 5km, every hour, for 50 hours. This will be a real challenge as I’ve not done anything on this scale before, but I hope we can create something special, and others feel they can get behind the challenge and support Tiffs legacy giving hope to those living with blood cancer.”
While blood cancer is the third biggest cancer killer, awareness of the condition is low, with over half of people unable to name a single blood cancer symptom. Will, will be joined during the challenge at various points by players, coaches and staff from the Tigers family and others.
Will Findlay said: “We’ve already received some great support from Leicester Tigers club partners, Wilo, and Mattioli Woods, but with around 250,000 people living with blood cancer in the UK, all the support we can get is needed to make a difference.
“You can donate to my JustGiving page, share my challenge with your friends and family and if you’re local to Leicester, please come down to Mattioli Woods Welford Road over the weekend and cheer me on, or run alongside me. Blood Cancer UK will be following my challenge, so make sure you’re following them on social media to see how I’m getting on. Hopefully I’ll see you on the other side!”
Blood Cancer UK’s, CEO Helen Rowntree, thanked Will Findlay:
“We’re grateful for Will who’s taking on this massive challenge, and it’s a big thank you from us and all the blood cancer community. Will was one of the people who got behind Tiff and the rest of the family when she was first diagnosed, and it is inspiring to see that he is continuing that effort now.
“We’ve come a long way in our fight against blood cancer, we are confident we can beat it within a generation and the money raised will fund vital research into blood cancer as well as help support those in the community who desperately need it.”
To support Will Findlay visit his JustGiving page on – https://www.justgiving.com/page/will-findlay-250in50