Danny Cipriani is well-known for being one of England’s star rugby players in the 21st century. Over a storied career, he has played for England on several occasions, and played for many clubs.
While rugby is seen as a highly-macho sport with no room for anything non-robust in nature, the truth is, that like every other profession, mental health problems are present.
Cipriani has commented on the mental health struggles he has gone through during his career – which he has managed to battle through.
Early Life
Cipriani had a rather privileged upbringing, having attended private schools in his youth.
As a keen sportsman, Cipriani starred in multiple sports. He played at county level in both cricket and squash, and had a fledging youth football career.
This culminated in Cipriani being offered a youth contract at Reading Football Club. However, he ultimately turned to rugby – a decision that has paid handsome dividends since.
Rugby career
Over the next two decades, Cipriani played for a variety of clubs, and was considered one of the finest players of his generation.
He started his career at Wasps, before he moved to Australia’s Melbourne Rebels in 2011. He returned a year later to England, where he played until his retirement in 2022.
He made several appearances for England, and was known in 2008 for being English rugby hero Jonny Wilkinson’s replacement after an injury ruled Wilkinson out.
Sadly, Cipriani missed out on several international competitions due to a combination of ill-timed injuries and disciplinary issues.
Cipriani had a rather combative nature, and his rugby career wasn’t without controversy. For many, the controversies blighted his legacy.
They included training ground bust-ups, allegations of dubious off-field behaviour, alcohol incidents, and questions over his commitment to rugby.
Mental Health struggles
In a 2020 interview, Cipriani revealed he had been suffering from mental health problems for over 10 years.
In the aftermath of an ex-girlfriend’s death, Cipriani released a video where he stated “it’s okay to be vulnerable”.
In this video, Cipriani spoke of trying to buy a gun in an effort to end his life at the age of 22. But he then stated that he “couldn’t do it” as he still had “some fight in me”.
Cipriani revealed that he saw a psychiatrist for a length of time, with one of his biggest problems being his constant worries throughout his career of what was being said about him – an issue that affects many in sport.
This is a classic symptom of Anxiety. Worrying and other fears are commonly seen in this condition.
He finished the video by stating that society needs to be kinder- something that is very true.
In positive news – Cipriani was given significant support by his club and the wider society after his comments.
Summary
Cipriani was able to overcome his mental health struggles to have a successful rugby career. He appears to be enjoying his retirement, which is positive to see.
His story is a reminder that anyone can suffer from mental health problems. Similarly though – anyone can recover from them!
Image Credit: “Danny Cipriani” by Peter J Dean is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/?ref=openverse.
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