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Top 11 Players known to struggle with an addiction

Athletes may be able to run faster, jump higher, lift more and throw farther than you and I, but they are human too, after all. As a result, they face the same problems as everyone else, and for many, those problems are related to addiction. Many of your favorite athletes may have struggled with substance abuse at some point, whether well-documented or not.Addiction transcends class, race, gender and nationality. and transcends sport. You can find athletes who have dealt with substance abuse in almost every sport imaginable. There are also many athletes in the middle of a lifelong battle with addiction. Some of the athletes here have made it to the other side, while others are still struggling.There are 30 athletes who struggle with addiction. Some of them are inspiring others who are dealing with similar issues.

By Mike BrownPublished about a year ago 7 min read
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1. Lawrence Taylor

Sport: Football

Career: 13 seasons (1981-93)

Stats: 142 SACK, 9 INT, 11 FR

Imagine being as great as arguably the greatest defensive player of all time, Lawrence Taylor, and still having a strong desire to turn your back on the game. Why was LT so eager to retire? Because that way he wouldn't be drug tested and could take as much cocaine as he wanted. he was the only bright spot in my future.” . Though he's been in rehab and arrested multiple times, Taylor's battle with addiction will keep him busy for the rest of his life.

2. Michael Phelps

Sport: Swimming

Career: 16 years (2000-12, 2014-16)

Stats: Olympic Gold medalist

It can take multiple public events before a person finally clicks, and Phelps went on strike three times. In 2004, when he was just 19, he was arrested for DUI, also three months after he won his first Olympic gold medal. Then, in 2009, Phelps was photographed using a bong at a party in his flat at the University of South Carolina. Finally, in 2014, just months after his retirement, Phelps was again arrested for DUI. After this incident, Phelps attended a rehab facility for 45 days and joined Alcoholics His Anonymous. This arrest hurt Phelps personally as well as professionally.

USA Swimming suspended him for six months and prevented him from participating in the 2015 World Championships. His road to recovery began in rehab, where he got engaged three months after leaving the facility, before returning to the pool, where he won another six medals at the 2016 Summer Games.

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3. Tyson Fury

Sport: Boxing

Career: 13 years (2008-15, 2018-present)

Stats: 31-0-1 (22 KO), Two-time Heavyweight Champion

In 2015, Fury became the unified world heavyweight champion after losing to Wladimir Klitschko for the first time in over a decade. However, the 2016 rematch never materialized as Fury tested positive for cocaine. At this point, he was dependent on both drugs and alcohol, which caused him to skyrocket to his 330 pounds. Fury was suspended and did not compete for nearly three years before returning to the ring in 2018.

He came back as the best version of himself, winning two of his three matches against Deontay Wilder and drawing another one of his. He also regained his position as the world's top heavyweight by winning the WBC and The Ring heavyweight championships.

4. Andre Agassi

Sport: Tennis

Career: 21 years (1986-2006)

Stats: 60 Titles, 8 Major Titles

After becoming one of the faces of tennis in the early 1990s, Agassi found himself at the bottom of his career. Agassi failed a drug test for using methamphetamine, but Agassi lied to the Professional Tennis Association (ATP) and said a friend spiked his drink, which was a lie. later admitted. The ATP lied to avoid Agassi's suspension, but the moment was a wake-up call for him.

Agassi then resumed playing tennis and underwent his program of intensive conditioning to be in the best shape of his life. It paid off, and Agassi had a successful second half of his career, earning a Career Super Slam.

5. Brett FavreSport

Sport: Football

Career: 20 seasons (1991-2010)

Stats: 71,838 YDS, 508 TD, 62.0 CMP%

After being named the NFL's MVP for the 1995 season, Favre underwent routine ankle surgery. However, he later suffered a seizure, and his addiction to alcohol and painkillers became known to the public when Favre entered the treatment center. He spent 46 days at an NFL-accredited center in Kansas, and he later admitted that his addiction may have prevented the Packers from winning a Super Bowl.

But after beating his addiction, Favre will win that Super Bowl and collect some more MVPs. Favre will win the second of three consecutive MVPs of the 1996 season, and the Packers will win the Super Bowl about seven months after Favre finishes rehab.

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6. Eva Marie

Sport: Wrestling

Career: 6 years (2013-17, 2020-21)

Stats: Diva Search Winner

In 2018, Eva Marie revealed in an essay that she is an alcoholic and will "be an alcoholic for the rest of her life." She also said that although she had been sober for five years at the time, she was not "cured".

Eva Marie said she was a college football player when she started abusing alcohol and multiple DUIs that landed her serving three months in prison. While she pursued a modeling and acting career in Los Angeles, it continued after her playing days and didn't stop until she joined WWE in 2013. She first started out with alcohol at E. We mentioned history! Following the Total Divas series, I wrote this essay in hopes of helping and inspiring others who may be suffering from similar problems.

7. Darren McCarty

Sport: Hockey

Career: 16 seasons (1993-2008)

Stats: 120 G, 155 A, 275 PTS

A four-time Stanley Cup winner, McCarty has been in rehab four times. He has admitted to abusing alcohol throughout his playing career, and that lifestyle caught up with him as he retired. He had gained 70 pounds over his weight and was at risk of organ failure by the time he finally sobered up. He credits cannabis with helping with that.

McCarty says THC has helped manage pain and has also helped her feel better. Now he helps educate former hockey retirees about the benefits of cannabis over taking painkillers.

8. David Thompson

Sport: Basketball

Career: 8 seasons (1976-84)

Stats: 22.1 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 3.2 APG

He was Michael Jordan's handpicked choice to be inducted into the Hall of Fame and is one of only six NBA players to score 70 points in a game. But David Thompson is also someone who cites depression and loneliness as reasons for turning to drugs. It happened in 1980 when Thompson sat out with a leg injury, and he battled it for seven years, even admitting to spending $1,000 a day on cocaine. , he was arrested for public intoxication and two years later for domestic violence.

Eventually, he realized he needed more than rehab and became a born-again Christian in 1987.

9. Keith Hernandez

Sport: Baseball

Career: 17 seasons (1974-90)

Stats: .296 BA, 162 HR, 1,071 RBI

Hernandez, an 11-time Gold Glove winner and former batting champion, has admitted to using cocaine during his career. He even played a game with the Cardinals when he was under their influence, and was part of the Pittsburgh drug trial involving nearly 20 MLB players in 1987. Although he denied it, he could not deny that he used the drug.

His drug use played a role in being traded to the Mets from St. Louis, and Hernandez said he never used drugs in New York. He helped the Mets win his 1986 World Series, along with several other players with notable drag his histories such as Darryl His Strawberry and Doc He Gooden.

10. Oksana Baiul

Sport: Figure skating

Career: 4 years (1991-94)

Stats: Olympic Gold Medalist

Baiul won a gold medal at just 16 years old at the 1994 Winter Olympics. She turned professional shortly thereafter, which meant touring all around the world and putting on skating exhibitions. Unfortunately, nearly everyone Baiul was on tour with was an adult, and there was lots of alcohol consumed while traveling. Baiul got caught up in that world and became an alcoholic as a teenager, culminating in her drunk driving arrest at 19 years old.

That proved to be a turning point in her life, and she first attended alcohol education before then going to alcohol rehab. Two-and-a-half months later, she completed the program and stated that she’s been sober ever since.

11. Wayne Rooney

Sport: Soccer

Career: 19 seasons (2002-20)

Stats: 237 G, 119 A

Whenever you make your pro debut at 16 years old for one of the most prestigious soccer clubs in the world, there’s lots of pressure on you. To cope with that pressure, Wayne Rooney turned to alcohol in his younger days. He won’t say when he began drinking, but he didn’t stop binging until he was 24. Rooney said if he had a few days off in between games, he would lock himself in his house for two days and do nothing but drink.

Despite this, he still performed to his full capabilities, as he is the all-time leading scorer for both Manchester United and the England National Team.

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About the Creator

Mike Brown

Hello I am Mike Brown A freelance Content and Tech Writer .

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