A former international rugby player is now seen as having a disability because of injuries he got while playing.
Life as a professional rugby player can be tough on the body. One former international player recently opened up about health issues he faced during his career, which led to him being officially recognized as having a disability.
In England, there have been growing worries about how rugby affects former players, especially about head injuries. Ben Youngs even looked into this in a BBC documentary, focusing on concussions and the risks to brain health over time.
Now, news has come out about a former French rugby star who has been told he has a disability because of injuries from his playing days. Maxime Mermoz shared last week on social media that he was officially diagnosed after dealing with serious health problems.
Mermoz, who played for Toulouse and Toulon, talked to Actu Rugby after retiring in 2020. He said, “What happened to me is clearly linked to rugby because I took some direct hits. Back then, it was ‘sink or swim.’ If you complained, you were seen as weak.”
The 39-year-old remembers that his problems started in 2015 while training at high altitude with Toulon, when he began suffering from tinnitus. In 2017, playing for Newcastle Falcons (then called Newcastle Red Bulls), he had episodes of vertigo that left him weak for months. His condition didn’t improve after he returned to Toulouse in 2018, according to L’Equipe.
He explained, “Some days I couldn’t even look at my phone because screens made me dizzy. My reflexes and nervous system were affected. I couldn’t even look someone in the eyes because my eyes wouldn’t stay open; I would sometimes fall over.”
Despite these challenges, Mermoz had a strong career, earning 35 caps for France and even starting in the 2011 World Cup final against New Zealand. His health got better after 2022 when he was diagnosed with a haematoma bylline rupture in his inner ear. Since then, anti-inflammatory medication has nearly wiped out his symptoms, though he still has some hearing problems.