Melbourne I Tuesday 10 March 2026

Bec Daniher

Bec Daniher is the Executive Director and spokesperson for FightMND, Australia’s leading charity dedicated to funding vital research and improving care for people living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) – a terminal illness with no effective treatment or cure.

A former elite athlete and qualified accountant, Bec represented Australia at the 2013 Rowing World Championships in South Korea. That same year, her father – AFL legend and 2025 Australian of the Year, Neale Daniher – was diagnosed with MND. Shortly after, when FightMND was established by Neale, Patrick Cunningham, and Dr Ian Davis OAM, Bec made the decision to step away from both her sporting and professional career to join the organisation as its first employee.

Since then, Bec has played a pivotal role in transforming FightMND into a national movement. She developed the first Big Freeze beanie – now an iconic symbol of the campaign – and has led major fundraising initiatives including The Big Freeze and Daniher’s Drive. Under her leadership, The Big Freeze has grown from a $2 million campaign into a movement that rallies a nation, raising over $20 million annually and inspiring Australians everywhere to join the fight against MND.

Bec also leads Daniher’s Drive, a regional-focused initiative designed to engage and include remote and rural communities in the broader FightMND mission. The event raises over $2 million annually and plays a crucial role in connecting the campaign with communities nationwide.

Since its establishment in 2014, FightMND has striven to be a disruptor in Australia’s MND research landscape. To date, the organisation has enabled more than $138 million to be invested into MND research and care projects. In 2025 alone, FightMND committed $22.9 million to vital MND Cure research and care – including $21.5 million into research and infrastructure projects to accelerate treatments and a cure, and $1.4 million to improve care, extend quality of life, and elevate the voices of people living with MND through programs such as the National Lived Experience Network.