The twists and turns of life are strange. The sports world knows (unfortunately) many stories of top athletes who struggle with life after their careers end. And life-saving help can come from where you least expect it.
This is what happened to Sir Bradley Wiggins, winner of the 2012 Tour de France and Olympic time trial champion in the same year. The British athlete admitted that upon returning to normal life at the age of 36, he faced many obstacles.
"I always thought people would walk all over me because I didn't think much of myself," he stated. "When cycling disappeared from my life, the Wiggins persona also fell away. I had to deal with myself, and I didn't like myself very much."
Wiggins admitted that three years after retiring, he had become a drug addict. "A large part of the reasons were related to my childhood. I grew up without a father, and the coach who abused me was my first male role model in cycling. I was only 13, but it led me into a very dark period," he recalled.
In addition, Wiggins went through personal bankruptcy. "I admit that I didn't pay attention to my financial situation while competing. This happens to many top athletes: when you earn a lot of money and don't keep an eye on it, people around you take advantage of it. I was fleeced, left, right, and center. Accountants too."
Wiggins confirmed that he has since received treatment and is free from addiction, thanks to Lance Armstrong, who received a lifetime ban from cycling for doping, and who paid for his therapy.
"I've gotten to know Lance very well over the last eight years. He took me to a treatment center and paid for it. He had a similar fatherless childhood to mine. He told me that I couldn't let all this go and had to sort it out. Lance did the same for Jan Ullrich – all three of us grew up without fathers," Wiggins said.
