- The star chalked up 62 caps for France before retiring from the game in 2014
- He is convinced his memory will never return but is ‘rediscovering life’ at 47
Rugby legend and former France international Sebastien Chabal has emotionally opened up on his battle with memory loss in a candid and heartbreaking interview.
Chabal, 47, chalked up 62 caps for France and starred for domestic clubs Bourgoin, Sale Sharks, Racing Metro and Lyon during a glittering career in rugby — but has now revealed he cannot remember a ‘single match’ he played in the sport.
The ex-France forward shared how he has been suffering from memory problems since calling time on his career in 2014, speaking on YouTube show ‘Legend’.
‘I don’t remember a single second of a rugby match I’ve played. And I don’t remember a single one of the 62 Marseillaises (France’s national anthem) I’ve experienced,’ he said.
‘I don’t talk about it, because it’s just my business, but there are quite a few actions that are carried out by former players, in teams, because we’ve taken a hit on the helmet. There’s the pate that hit the marrow.
‘I don’t remember anything. Sometimes I say to my wife, “Actually, I wasn’t the one who played rugby”.’
Rugby legend Sebastien Chabal has emotionally opened up on his battle with memory loss
Chabal, 47, chalked up 62 caps for France during a glittering career he now can’t remember
England’s World Cup winners Phil Vickery (left) and Steve Thompson (centre) are among the 500 former rugby players to have signed up to the concussion class action since 2022
Players suffering from neurological conditions such as early-onset dementia and Alzheimer’s has been an ongoing talking point in the sport over the past few years.
In 2022, a group of 185 lawyers sued rugby’s governing bodies for negligence, alleging that playing in the sport for numerous years caused brain damage.
Ex-Wales star Alix Popham, 45, was diagnosed with early onset dementia when he was 40, while England’s World Cup winners Phil Vickery and Steve Thompson are among the 500 former players to have signed up to the class action against rugby authorities.
Steps may have been taken by the sport’s governing bodies with regards to concussion protocols since the 2022 lawsuit, but
Mail Sport reported last month that the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and significant technological advances are leading to hope that the treatment of head injuries and the management of concussion in rugby – as well as across professional sport – can be revolutionised.
But Chabal admitted in the interview that there is little he can do now to improve his memory, insisting that it ‘won’t return’.
‘Why bother? My memory won’t return,’ he said, when asked if he goes to the doctor about it. ‘I’m rediscovering my life. Before playing rugby, I never realised that I don’t remember anything.’
