Former England World Cup-winning prop Phil Vickery is unrecognisable in new photos after revealing his astonishing physical transformation through bodybuilding.
The 50-year-old, who was part of the 2003 team that beat Australia to help England win the Northern Hemisphere’s only Rugby World Cup, announced he had taken part in a competition in Hull and shared pictures.
He said the event was organised by the Physical Culture Association, which describes itself as the UK’s leading bodybuilding association.
Vickery said that the discipline of bodybuilding, as well as the camaraderie of being around fellow bodybuilders, had been crucial for his mental health.
He says first and foremost the gym and lifting weights has helped him physically but mentally more than anything, and he loves the discipline, the challenge, the atmosphere, the camaraderie and simple fact that it is freaking hard work and you cannot fake your way onto the stage.
The former prop says you cannot hide behind anyone or anything as your physique is the reflection of your work.
In August, Vickery gave a series of interviews in which he laid bare his struggles since last playing rugby 14 years ago.
Vickery, who won 73 England caps and five for the British and Irish Lions, has been diagnosed with “probable” chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a type of brain disease that is associated with repeated head impacts.
He says that he has issues with his memory, but that he would still love to go back and play at the highest level.
Source: stuff.co
