Rory Best takes on his third walking challenge for children with cancer
This September, Irish rugby legend Rory Best will embark on his third Rory’s Miles to Mayo challenge in aid of Cancer Fund for Children, and this year, he won’t be taking on the challenge alone.
From 12th – 20th September, Rory Best will captain a team of business leaders on a powerful journey – to walk 9 marathons in 9 days, covering over 235 miles throughout Ireland. Each participant will walk around 50,000 steps daily across Derry/Londonderry, Belfast, Dublin, Kildare, Carlow, Cork, Limerick, Galway before finishing in Cong, Co. Mayo.
This is the third chapter in a trilogy of fundraising walks created by the former Ireland and Ulster Rugby Captain so that we can provide emotional, social and therapeutic support to children, young people and families impacted by cancer.
Every Rory’s Miles to Mayo challenge has been incredibly special and humbling, inspired by Cancer Fund for Children’s ambition to build a second therapeutic short break centre called Daisy Lodge, on the shores of Lough Corrib in Cong, Co. Mayo. Across the last 5 years I have seen this vision come to life, and this year’s challenge carries even more weight as Daisy Lodge is currently being built and is set to open in Spring 2027. I’ve been privileged to turn the sod on this site and to see it go from an empty space full of potential to a working construction site and finally, a safe space for families, has been so amazing.
I can’t wait to finish my walk there once again, this time, with a team of inspirational business leaders by my side.
Rory Best
In 2021, Rory completed his first Rory’s Miles to Mayo challenge, walking 180 miles from our first Daisy Lodge in Newcastle, Co. Down to the site of our second centre in Cong, Co. Mayo, raising over €1 million. The second Rory’s Miles 2 Mayo challenge in 2023, saw Rory walking 220 miles from Dublin’s Aviva Stadium to Cong, raising €1.5million, breaking ground on the new Daisy Lodge on arrival.
In 2025, Rory’s mantle was taken up by a team of business leaders who took on the 26 Mountains to Mayo challenge, climbing the highest peak in every county across the island of Ireland. Together they raised over £1.5/€1.8 million.
This year, both campaigns will come together for Rory’s Miles to Mayo – The Trilogy.
After joining Rory on his walk in 2023, myself and several other business leaders were inspired to create 26 Mountains to Mayo and seeing the impact that had on families experiencing cancer has motivated us to keep going, this time by partnering with Rory on a full Miles to Mayo walk. The work of this charity is truly special. I have met some incredible families throughout my fundraising journey, and I hope we can all do them proud again as we tackle the challenge of a lifetime this September.
Roger Johnston, CEO of Axial 3D and 26 Mountains 2 Mayo challenge organiser
Each participant has made a commitment to raise a minimum of £/€50,000 to go towards our vital services. Their efforts are being bolstered by Arachas, Ireland’s largest nationwide insurance broker and part of the Ardonagh Group, who have come on board as a headline sponsor after supporting all three prior challenges.
Arachas has been a supporter of Rory’s Miles to Mayo since the beginning and will again be an integral partner in 2026. We are not just partners financially, having raised over €1m ourselves in 2025, but our 750 plus employees at 14 offices around the country have supported the initiative by taking to the roads and mountains of Ireland. Our business is based on supporting local people with local initiatives and we are excited that Daisy Lodge will soon be operational and able to support families throughout the country.
We are looking forward to bringing our teams together once again this September for this year’s marathon challenge.
Julie Galbraith, Chief Business Officer at Arachas
Find out more about this incredible challenge and how you can get behind Rory Best by visiting https://rorysmiles2mayo.cancerfundforchildren.com/.
