For those that have succeeded in climbing that sporting mountain, many call it the highlight of their career.

However, the individual sacrifices needed to win in the iconic red jersey pale in comparison to the sacrifices currently being made by avid Lions fan Kate Hardman and her family. The 40-year-old mother of three is battling stage four metastatic breast cancer and the prognosis is that it is incurable. Yet she continues to fight, determined to make every moment count and make memories with her husband, Kriss, and her children.

Against the backdrop of her struggle is the forthcoming British & Irish Lions Tour to Australia, and the rugby-mad couple, who live Down Under, have gone all in.

They have bought a caravan and will be following the Lions around the country, watching all bar the opening two games, culminating in the three-Test series against the Wallabies in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, and Kate is grateful for the chance to make memories with her family.

“It means a lot,” she said. “It is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us. I have always wanted to do a Lions Tour, and it has always been a dream for me to be able to experience that with my children and be able to take them through that. Especially with my son who loves rugby.

“It is not every day you get to be able to take your children and be able to give them that experience. It means an incredible amount.”

Kate’s story began in 2017 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer on her left side just after the birth of her first son Kian. Following on from radiotherapy, a single mastectomy and other reconstructive surgeries, she was given the all-clear.

However, in 2023, whilst 23 weeks pregnant with her third child, daughter Kaia, a lump was found on Kate’s right side as well as on the site of the previous cancer. The cancer had returned and, after a CT scan 10 weeks later, had spread to her neck, causing her C5 to disintegrate. It was at that point the cancer was deemed stage four.

Despite all that Kate was going through, she gave birth to her daughter after 35 weeks, who was happy and healthy, and was also told the cancer had not spread further.

After finally receiving some good news, the Hardmans, who emigrated to Darwin in 2014, decided it was time to make the most of whatever time – hopefully many decades – they had together and Kriss, who recovered from testicular cancer himself after being diagnosed in March 2020, explained the rollercoaster of emotions the pair have felt.

“We have had our moments of thinking ‘who did we did we piss off in past life’ for two people in their 30s to get cancer. I was 33 and Kate was 38 when she was diagnosed with incurable cancer,” he said.

“We felt pretty unlucky. But you have your moment of feeling sorry for yourself and you let yourself have that moment, and then we thought ‘what are we going to do about it?’

“That is why we have decided to really live our lives. We have moved into a caravan, got rid of the house and we are going to chase the Lions around the country and see parts of Australia we have not seen before.”

The pair have been sharing their story on social media to raise awareness but also to demonstrate that people living with cancer can still chase their dreams and live life to the fullest.

And the couple have been overwhelmed by the support they have received, with Canterbury giving them Lions shirts and lots of other people getting in touch with them.

“It has been incredible,” continued Kate. “It has been overwhelming the support we have had.

“You get people write to you in all different languages. We have had support from all over the world. We did not think our reach would get that far.

“Our motto through everything is strength in adversity so although we are going through this, we wanted show even though we have been hit with hard times, it is about how you move forward from them. It is about what you do and the positivity you show.”

Kriss, who has been involved with the sport for over 25 years, added: “The whole ethos of rugby, you make friendships and bonds with people that are like no other. We wanted to start showing that on our page, how important rugby is to us and that it has been a huge part of lives.

“So that is how rugby fits in with us. We both love rugby, and I have played a lot, and we are just going all out for this Tour.”

Despite their situation, the Hardmans are relishing the chance to get stuck into the tour and playing their part in one of sport’s great rivalries. Having been on the receiving end of his work colleagues’ comments about recent poor England sporting displays, Kriss hopes it is his turn to dish out the jokes about Australia’s performances.

“There is nothing I love more than sticking it to the Aussies,” he joked. “I would love it if the Lions won.

“That is another great thing about rugby. You can sit next to someone in the stadium supporting the other team and you can have a bit of banter, and it all stays friendly, and you can have a laugh.”

When Kate found out her news, the couple made it their goal to spend all their time ticking off things from their bucket list, of which watching the Lions was in their top three – alongside going to Disneyland and seeing the Grand Canyon. And for Kate, that helps keep her mind looking towards the future.

“It is something to look forward to and when I look at the position I am in, it might be the only time I get to watch them [the Lions], and I am going to grab that opportunity with both hands,” she added.

“It is a once on a lifetime opportunity. We have waited until it is in our own back yard, and the kids will only be the ages they are at once. And who knows, maybe through the Lions’ generosity, the kids might be able to get involved with the team in some capacity.

“If they were able to be pitch side and wave a flag or something, that would make their whole year and I would be over the moon to see that too.”