Reaching the top of the mountain is one thing, but working out where to go after conquering the summit is quite another.
For Phil Vickery, the pinnacle came in Sydney in 2003, when England were crowned world champions after vanquishing Australia in one of the most thrilling finals in sporting history.
As the final whistle blew, the tight-head prop – who had been substituted at the end of normal time and forced to watch the rest of the nail-biting final from the sidelines – invaded pitch in celebration as Jonny Wilkinson’s last-gasp drop goal sealed England’s historic victory. It was a moment that would come to define Vickery’s glittering rugby career.
And yet, while the roar of that famous triumph would never fade, life after rugby proved a rather different challenge. Bankruptcy, divorce and a loss of the identity left the former England captain facing a battle more daunting than any opposition forward.
Remarkably, bodybuilding would offer Vickery a new sense of purpose. Now competing on the bodybuilding stage, the former prop has undergone a remarkable physical transformation, looking almost unrecognisable from his rugby-playing days.
‘Whatever else is going out in the rest of the world is totally irrelevant when you walk through those gym doors,’ he told Daily Mail Sport’s Nik Simon in 2024. ‘I needed a challenge, something outside my comfort zone, and I thought shall I do a bodybuilding show? I was placed third.
Bodybuilding offered England World Cup winner Phil Vickery a new purpose after retirement
The prop reached the summit of world rugby in 2003 before going on to captain his country
‘My genetics are c**p, I’m not made to be a bodybuilder, but I loved the process. The pain and the hurt and the suffering to get on stage.
‘When you look someone in the eye who has gone through that you think, ‘F***ing respect’. It’s similar to when I look at another rugby player, ‘You’re hurt, come here bud, well done’.’
Bodybuilding was far from Vickery’s first attempt to forge a new path after retirement. Shortly after hanging up his boots, the former England prop turned his attention to the kitchen, winning the 2011 series of Celebrity Masterchef. The triumph inspired him to pursue a career in the restaurant trade, launching his venture, No. 3, in Cheltenham.
But the business soon encountered difficulties. The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted its planned opening in 2020, forcing the restaurant to initially operate a collection and takeaway service before eventually opening its doors.
Despite later relocating to new premises, No. 3 ultimately ceased trading in January 2024, with Vickery citing the cost-of-living crisis and soaring energy bills among the factors that had devastated trade.
The closure marked another painful setback for the former rugby star, with the financial fallout forming part of a wider period of upheaval that would culminate in personal bankruptcy the following month.
Vickery applied to make himself bankrupt using debtor’s petition in February 2024, owing his liquidated management consultancy Vix Limited £97,806.
Sources told the Daily Mail that he had amassed debts of ‘hundreds of thousands of pounds’ to a lot of contacts and the HMRC, and the company also owed HMRC £71,000 in VAT and PAYE and National Insurance payments.
Alongside the financial turmoil, Vickery was also navigating the breakdown of his marriage, leaving him grappling with both professional and personal challenges simultaneously.
‘It’s been f***ing difficult,’ Vickery candidly told The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast in December 2024 . ‘The hardest bit is obviously the family side of things.
‘I think, like all these things, you make decisions and things happen. Then it’s about dealing with the repercussions – and often that’s sad, it’s difficult, it’s hard.
The former rugby star showed off his physique after taking part in his latest competition in Hull
Vickery said his newfound passion for bodybuilding followed his divorce from his wife
‘There aren’t any winners in it for anybody. Obviously family, my children, and all your associates – your conditional friends and your non-conditional friends – you find out who those are.
‘It’s been an interesting exercise. It hurts, it’s horrible. Honour, integrity – all those things – but it’s happened.
‘It’s very rare that it’s business and personal all at the same time. But for me, perhaps they are a bit more linked. It’s been hard.’
Vickery’s decision to embrace bodybuilding was not an overnight fix, nor did it erase the difficulties he had faced, but it gave him something tangible to work towards at a time when he desperately needed a fresh direction.
Warned of the dangers of alcohol during difficult times, he was determined not to reach for the bottle during what was undoubtedly the toughest period of his life to date.
During his Daily Mail Sport interview in 2024, he explained how bodybuilding became a far healthier alternative: ‘Going through divorce, somebody said, “Don’t let drink become your friend” and that really spooked me.
‘I could quite easily see how I could fall into that, so I consciously stayed away from it. Bodybuilding was a good excuse, that final prep, because you’re super clean.
‘Covid, the restaurant, bankruptcy, divorce… is it the lowest point of your life? Of course it is. It’s your own integrity. It’s Phil Vickery; honesty, integrity, passion, pride… but you’ve failed. You can keep playing a game, telling yourself you’ll make it work. In the end, it caught up with me.
‘You start to ask yourself the question: “What is the purpose of me being here? Is it easier if I’m not here?”
‘There’s been scenarios which I’ve gone through in my head but the more I think about that, regardless of what others think of me, I’ve got two beautiful kids, an amazing brother and sister, my mum, my aunty, my uncle, my cousins. Selfish isn’t the right word but you think, “Come on”.’
The former England captain also revealed how deeply he struggled to come to terms with life after rugby, admitting he could not bring himself to attend the 10-year reunion of England’s 2003 World Cup-winning squad.
His struggles were also reflected in his physical condition. Following three neck operations, Vickery found it difficult to maintain the training regime that had defined his playing career, while the absence of a clear competitive goal saw his weight steadily increase.
‘I really struggled with the gym after rugby because I had always trained with a purpose. Suddenly you get a little bit bigger and a little bit rounder,’ he added.
‘Another year, another half a stone. Before I knew it, I was 24 stone. A big whopper. You’re thinking, “F***ing hell, my knees hurt, my ankles hurt, my shoulders hurt. F***ing hell, Phil, come on”.
By 2024, however, Vickery had shed six stone, bringing his weight down to 18 stone. More importantly, he had come to recognise exercise as something that could benefit him beyond the demands of elite competition.
‘It took me a long time to understand that I need to go to the gym for my own wellbeing, be it physical health or mental health,’ he added.
At his lowest ebb, it offered Vickery (pictured in 2024) a dose of endorphins and escapism
In August, Vickery also revealed he has issues with his memory after being diagnosed with ‘probable’ chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a brain disease that is usually caused by repeated head impacts.
‘The sport’s f***ing amazing,’ he told The Observer: ‘Rugby’s an amazing sport. You know, the sad reality is I sit here today: would I do it all again? Oh my God, I would. I’m f***ing mental, but I would because it’s amazing.
‘I also sit here knowing there are lots of people out there, I believe, who are suffering because of the sport. And it’s not about blaming the sport and about getting all nasty and horrible.
‘Let’s just f***ing help people. There are people suffering, so let’s help them.’
Now, at 50, Vickery is thriving in his unlikely second career as a bodybuilder. On Tuesday, he stunned fans by sharing a glimpse of his remarkable physique on social media, posing with a bronzed, chiselled frame following his latest competition in Hull.
On Instagram, Vickery said: ‘Your physique is the reflection of your work. It’s not about anyone else for me it’s just you being the best version of you and being better than last time.’
