Reaching the highest of the mountain is one factor, however figuring out the place to go after conquering the summit is sort of one other.
For Phil Vickery, the top got here in Sydney in 2003, when England had been topped world champions after vanquishing Australia in one of the vital thrilling finals in sporting historical past.
As the ultimate whistle blew, the tight-head prop – who had been substituted on the finish of regular time and compelled to observe the remainder of the nail-biting remaining from the sidelines – invaded pitch in celebration as Jonny Wilkinson’s last-gasp drop objective sealed England’s historic victory. It was a second that will come to outline Vickery’s glittering rugby profession.
And but, whereas the roar of that well-known triumph would by no means fade, life after rugby proved a quite totally different problem. Chapter, divorce and a lack of the identification left the previous England captain dealing with a battle extra daunting than any opposition ahead.
Remarkably, bodybuilding would supply Vickery a brand new sense of objective. Now competing on the bodybuilding stage, the previous prop has undergone a outstanding bodily transformation, trying virtually unrecognisable from his rugby-playing days.
‘No matter else goes out in the remainder of the world is completely irrelevant once you stroll by means of these health club doorways,’ he advised Day by day Mail Sport’s Nik Simon in 2024. ‘I wanted a problem, one thing exterior my consolation zone, and I believed shall I do a bodybuilding present? I used to be positioned third.
Bodybuilding provided England World Cup winner Phil Vickery a brand new objective after retirement
The prop reached the summit of world rugby in 2003 earlier than occurring to captain his nation
‘My genetics are c**p, I am not made to be a bodybuilder, however I liked the method. The ache and the harm and the struggling to get on stage.
‘Whenever you look somebody within the eye who has gone by means of that you simply suppose, ‘F***ing respect’. It is much like after I take a look at one other rugby participant, ‘You are harm, come right here bud, properly completed’.’
Bodybuilding was removed from Vickery’s first try to forge a brand new path after retirement. Shortly after hanging up his boots, the previous England prop turned his consideration to the kitchen, profitable the 2011 collection of Movie star Masterchef. The triumph impressed him to pursue a profession within the restaurant commerce, launching his enterprise, No. 3, in Cheltenham.
However the enterprise quickly encountered difficulties. The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted its deliberate opening in 2020, forcing the restaurant to initially function a group and takeaway service earlier than ultimately opening its doorways.
Regardless of later relocating to new premises, No. 3 finally ceased buying and selling in January 2024, with Vickery citing the cost-of-living disaster and hovering vitality payments among the many elements that had devastated commerce.
The closure marked one other painful setback for the previous rugby star, with the monetary fallout forming a part of a wider interval of upheaval that will culminate in private chapter the next month.
Vickery utilized to make himself bankrupt utilizing debtor’s petition in February 2024, owing his liquidated administration consultancy Vix Restricted £97,806.
Sources advised the Day by day Mail that he had amassed money owed of ‘tons of of hundreds of kilos’ to a variety of contacts and the HMRC, and the corporate additionally owed HMRC £71,000 in VAT and PAYE and Nationwide Insurance coverage funds.
Alongside the monetary turmoil, Vickery was additionally navigating the breakdown of his marriage, leaving him grappling with each skilled and private challenges concurrently.
‘It has been f***ing tough,’ Vickery candidly advised The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast in December 2024 . ‘The toughest bit is clearly the household aspect of issues.
‘I believe, like all this stuff, you make choices and issues occur. Then it is about coping with the repercussions – and sometimes that is unhappy, it is tough, it is arduous.
The previous rugby star confirmed off his physique after participating in his newest competitors in Hull
Vickery stated his newfound ardour for bodybuilding adopted his divorce from his spouse
‘There are not any winners in it for anyone. Clearly household, my kids, and all of your associates – your conditional buddies and your non-conditional buddies – you discover out who these are.
‘It has been an attention-grabbing train. It hurts, it is horrible. Honour, integrity – all these issues – however it’s occurred.
‘It’s extremely uncommon that it is enterprise and private all on the identical time. However for me, maybe they’re a bit extra linked. It has been arduous.’
Vickery’s resolution to embrace bodybuilding was not an in a single day repair, nor did it erase the difficulties he had confronted, however it gave him one thing tangible to work in the direction of at a time when he desperately wanted a recent course.
Warned of the hazards of alcohol throughout tough instances, he was decided to not attain for the bottle throughout what was undoubtedly the hardest interval of his life up to now.
Throughout his Day by day Mail Sport interview in 2024, he defined how bodybuilding grew to become a far more healthy various: ‘Going by means of divorce, any person stated, “Do not let drink turn into your buddy” and that basically spooked me.
‘I may fairly simply see how I may fall into that, so I consciously stayed away from it. Bodybuilding was a very good excuse, that remaining prep, since you’re tremendous clear.
‘Covid, the restaurant, chapter, divorce… is it the bottom level of your life? In fact it’s. It is your individual integrity. It is Phil Vickery; honesty, integrity, ardour, satisfaction… however you’ve got failed. You’ll be able to hold taking part in a recreation, telling your self you may make it work. In the long run, it caught up with me.
‘You begin to ask your self the query: “What’s the objective of me being right here? Is it simpler if I am not right here?”
‘There’s been situations which I’ve gone by means of in my head however the extra I take into consideration that, no matter what others consider me, I’ve acquired two lovely youngsters, an incredible brother and sister, my mum, my aunty, my uncle, my cousins. Egocentric is not the appropriate phrase however you suppose, “Come on”.’
The previous England captain additionally revealed how deeply he struggled to come back to phrases with life after rugby, admitting he couldn’t deliver himself to attend the 10-year reunion of England’s 2003 World Cup-winning squad.
His struggles had been additionally mirrored in his bodily situation. Following three neck operations, Vickery discovered it tough to keep up the coaching regime that had outlined his taking part in profession, whereas the absence of a transparent aggressive objective noticed his weight steadily improve.
‘I actually struggled with the health club after rugby as a result of I had at all times skilled with a objective. Out of the blue you get just a little bit larger and just a little bit rounder,’ he added.
‘One other 12 months, one other half a stone. Earlier than I knew it, I used to be 24 stone. An enormous whopper. You are considering, “F***ing hell, my knees harm, my ankles harm, my shoulders harm. F***ing hell, Phil, come on”.
By 2024, nevertheless, Vickery had shed six stone, bringing his weight right down to 18 stone. Extra importantly, he had come to recognise train as one thing that might profit him past the calls for of elite competitors.
‘It took me a very long time to know that I must go to the health club for my very own wellbeing, be it bodily well being or psychological well being,’ he added.
At his lowest ebb, it provided Vickery (pictured in 2024) a dose of endorphins and escapism
In August, Vickery additionally revealed he has points along with his reminiscence after being identified with ‘possible’ continual traumatic encephalopathy, a mind illness that’s often attributable to repeated head impacts.
‘The game’s f***ing wonderful,’ he advised The Observer: ‘Rugby’s an incredible sport. You recognize, the unhappy actuality is I sit right here right this moment: would I do all of it once more? Oh my God, I might. I’m f***ing psychological, however I might as a result of it’s wonderful.
‘I additionally sit right here figuring out there are many individuals on the market, I imagine, who’re struggling due to the game. And it’s not about blaming the game and about getting all nasty and horrible.
‘Let’s simply f***ing assist individuals. There are individuals struggling, so let’s assist them.’
Now, at 50, Vickery is prospering in his unlikely second profession as a bodybuilder. On Tuesday, he surprised followers by sharing a glimpse of his outstanding physique on social media, posing with a bronzed, chiselled body following his newest competitors in Hull.
On Instagram, Vickery stated: ‘Your physique is the reflection of your work. It’s not about anybody else for me it’s simply you being one of the best model of you and being higher than final time.’
